


Broken Wings

by 18lzytwner



Series: Wicked Fifth Series [1]
Category: Wicked - All Media Types, Wicked - Schwartz/Holzman
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:47:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 34
Words: 30,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25197952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/18lzytwner/pseuds/18lzytwner
Summary: Our story begins at the death of Nessarose.  Oz is still in the grips of the Wizard and Morrible.  Can Elphaba defeat the two leading Oz down the wrong path?  Will Fiyero admit to Glinda that he's not in love with her?  Can the trio's complicated emotions make their defeat inevitable?  First of new series.  Fiyeraba
Relationships: Elphaba Thropp/Fiyero Tigelaar
Series: Wicked Fifth Series [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1825426
Comments: 14
Kudos: 14





	1. Chapter 1

He was too late. Fiyero froze at the edge of a Munchkin home right behind his Gale Force troops. Elphaba had the troops behind her and Glinda in front of her. What he saw made his blood run cold – underneath a house, there were a pair of legs. The only thing that would bring Elphaba back to Munchkinland would have been her sister.

"How could you?" There was murder in Elphaba's eyes as she stared down the woman she once considered a friend.

"I… I…" the blonde stammered. She had no idea how this had happened, but she knew that Morrible had to be behind it. She'd been setup and now her best friend looked as though she would harm her.

"Freeze Witch!" The Sergeant behind her had his rifle leveled at her. The sound of the other soldiers' rifles cocking caused Elphaba to whirl around. It was obvious that she was vastly outnumbered. The death of her sister had been a trap and it had worked well. There was a moment that she thought about fighting her way out, but it would be suicide. Of course, what Morrible probably intended to do to her made suicide look like a good option.

Fiyero didn't know what to do. If he attempted to help Elphaba, it could get them both killed. He knew that his troops believed the drivel that the Wizard was spewing. They were ready to kill.

"Please just surrender. I don't want to have to explain why you're dead," Glinda finally found some words. She couldn't admit that the green woman was her friend. The best way to help Elphaba was to remain free.

"Surrender? So Morrible can do her worst to me? Not much of an option," Elphaba told her after turning around to face the blonde.

"Please," Glinda tried again to get Elphaba to just turn herself in. She saw the energy crackling at her friend's fingertips. The blonde knew that the green woman was more powerful than her. She also knew that Elphaba probably could have knocked everyone here on their backsides at any moment. What concerned her was that the green woman hadn't tried to do that – at least not yet.

Before anyone could do anything else, the Sergeant fired his weapon. The bullet ripped into Elphaba's back and through her front. The green woman coughed up blood and fell down to her knees. Glinda went to her and quickly attempted a healing spell. Fiyero hard charged through the soldiers and beat the Sergeant on the back of the head with his trusty rifle, knocking him down.

"What part of the order to bring her in alive did you not understand?" He barked at the downed soldier.

"We couldn't let her get away," the Sergeant said as he held the back of his head.

"We had her surrounded! Where was she going to go?" Fiyero continued to berate the officer. He had to make a good show and it was killing him to not run to the woman he loved and hold her.

"I need to get her back to the Palace. My spell helped but she's not in good shape," Glinda announced.

"Can you bubble her there?" Fiyero asked, knowing that Munchkinland was too far to put Elphaba on a wagon and get her to a proper doctor. None of the Munchkins were going to offer their assistance – they had never liked the green woman since she was born.

"I'm going to do my best. As for our trigger-happy Sergeant, arrest him. He violated a direct order from our Wonderful Wizard and shall be punished," Glinda ordered. Quickly, Lieutenant Zetti cuffed the man and hauled him back toward his horse.

Glinda cast her bubble spell and it enclosed Elphaba along with her. Quietly hoping that the healing spell worked, the blonde directed the bubble back to the Emerald City. She worried that Morrible may take the opportunity to finish off her friend but what Glinda didn't realize was that the fish woman had been lying to her. Only Elphaba could read the Grimmerie, which is why the green woman was supposed to be brought in alive. Now the blonde hoped that her friend would make it.


	2. Chapter 2

"Uhhh…" Elphaba moaned. She could feel the dampness of the space around her and the hardness of the surface beneath her. Then she heard footsteps.

"I would not try and move Miss Thropp," the male voice said, in a low tone, trying to avoid drawing attention from the guards. Elphaba slowly opened her eyes. No one outside of Morrible, Glinda, and Fiyero knew that name – none of those people matched the voice.

"You were shot and I'm not sure the fish woman tried her hardest to help you before throwing you in here with us," the man explained, keeping his voice down.

"Where am I? Who are you? How do you…" she started as she tried to sit up. It was hard to talk given the wound she received.

"Easy now, don't move," he stopped her from getting up and helped her lie back down before continuing, "I'm Mopsi Pipt of Munchkinland. That is why I know your name. You are in Southstairs, though I figure you probably guessed that."

"Oh, the irony," Elphaba managed a painful chuckle.

"Irony?" A second voice spoke up, just as quiet as Mopsi.

"Morrible knows that the Munchkins hate me. They hated my father and my sister. They are dead and I am the last of the Thropp line. Throwing me in with Munchkins is Morrible's way of hoping I die in this cell," the green woman carefully turned her head to look at her cellmates. She wasn't sure she could trust them, but she also wasn't sure that she had much of a choice given her condition.

"I think she would have let you bleed out if she really wanted you dead," the second Munchkin pointed out.

"Oh no. That would be too easy. I must suffer first," Elphaba said.

"Yes well, as much as you don't think of Munchkins, we do not judge you. Someone in here is no friend of the fish woman and that makes you a friend of us," Mopsi told her.

"That is too kind of you," Elphaba said before sucking in. Glinda had obviously not been working on her healing spells.

"I'm Mopsi's brother, Popsi, by the way," the other Munchkin said.

"Nice to meet you," Elphaba gave a slight smile.

"We have been in here awhile. Why do you think all Munchkins hate you?" Popsi asked.

"I have been hated since I was born. My only crime is my skin color. Now it has led to my downfall. I was only trying to help and those who I thought were my friends have betrayed me," she said.

"Well Morrible has another thing coming if she thinks we'll hasten your death," Mopsi said. He carefully moved toward her and put his hand lightly on the bandage. The binding had been placed over her dress and his concern was that bits of dress or dirt had gotten into the wound. They were hardly in a sterile environment. He figured the last time Southstairs was clean was just after it was built.

"I'd like to check your wound, but I don't want it to get worse instead of better. The man who brought you in here seemed concerned about you, but he didn't tell us what had happened," Mopsi explained.

"What did he look like?" She asked, quietly hoping that it was Fiyero.

"He had darker skin with dark hair. Looked like a Gale Force uniform. I think he was a Winkie," Mopsi said.

"He's from the Vinkus, Arjiki tribe. Please don't use Winkie," Elphaba corrected him.

"You know him?" Popsi asked.

"We went to school together," she said, trying not to give more away. The pain was making it easy to let things slip but it was also becoming greater. That was an indication that something was wrong. Mopsi could tell something was up.

"I have to try a spell," Elphaba gritted her teeth.

"You mustn't. The cell could be enchanted. It could blow up," Popsi said. It wouldn't blow up, but he did bring up a good point. Mopsi ran to the front of the cell and used his cup to bang on the bars.

"We need help in here!"


	3. Chapter 3

The next thing that Elphaba remembered was waking up, not in the cell that she was in previously. It appeared to be some sort of infirmary. Not wanting to let on that she was conscious, the green woman looked around the best she could with just moving her eyes.

It was definitely an infirmary given the lack of bars, except near the door. There were no windows and all the light that was being generated came from multiple oil lamps, mounted at different levels along the ceiling line. Out of reach of any prisoner but meant for the medical people to pretend they weren't working in a hole under the ground.

"Ah, you're awake," a nurse who was walking over must have spotted her.

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Elphaba managed to croak. It was then she realized she could use some water. The nurse sensed the same thing and moved over to the table near the bed. There was a pitcher with some water and a cup. She poured the green woman a drink and Elphaba thankfully took it.

"Don't gulp. Nice and easy sips. The doctor had to open you up. It was a bit trickier than we originally thought," the nurse admitted.

"It's bad isn't it?" Elphaba asked after a few sips. The pain wasn't setting in yet but she figured it would be soon enough.

"It's not good, but it's fixable," the nurse smiled slightly. The green woman only nodded, knowing that they would probably only go so far before Morrible would not want them to continue to help her. A fully healed Wicked Witch was something the fish woman could not control. What Elphaba didn't realize was that Morrible didn't want her dead, well at least not yet.

"She must be returned to her cell," a guard said as he came up to them.

"She just got out of surgery. Are you out of your gourd man?" The nurse challenged him.

"What is going on here?" Another man approached and Elphaba surmised he was the doctor.

"This fool wants her to go back to her cell. Madame Morrible's instructions were to make sure that she survived her surgery. Sending her back now would not only jostle her stitches, it could cause her internal bleeding to start again. Or would you like to be the one to explain to the Wizard why the patient is dead?" The nurse gave the guard a look.

"She's right son. Didn't you hear what happened to the poor bugger who fired the shot that landed her here?" The doctor asked.

"But the Sergeant…" he started.

"Why don't you bring him in here and I'll tell him all about how bad of an idea it would be to move the patient before tomorrow," the doctor said. With that, the confused young man moved out of the infirmary.

"What did happen to him?" Elphaba asked after the guard walked away.

"He was made an example of for disobeying a direct order. Thirty lashes in front of the entire garrison. I heard the Captain was quite ferocious," the nurse said. Elphaba silently nodded. Fiyero was not a lost cause but only she could know that. If the truth got out… she was glad that they had had their moment in the forest as it might be the only one they got. Glinda on the other hand… the green woman wasn't so sure there was hope for her friend.

"What do I call you during my stay? Or is that against the rules?" Elphaba asked.

"I'm Doctor Smythe and this is Nurse Kelly. I'm afraid I can only hold off the guards until tomorrow. I don't see how that will help keep you alive but I cannot argue with the powers that be," Smythe explained.

"I am doomed no matter what happens, Doctor. I think we all know that. I appreciate your work and your help," the green woman gave a tight smile. He frowned and walked away. The nurse looked like she was going to be upset and Elphaba couldn't figure out if that was because they actually cared or because all of their efforts would be in vain.

"Get some rest and I'll check on you in a little while," Kelly smiled slightly and then left the green woman to her thoughts.


	4. Chapter 4

Just as Elphaba had been warned, early in the morning, the guards came and took her back to her cell, despite the medical staffs' objections. They weren't exactly careful as they jostled her down the twisting hallways until they reached her cell. A guard held Mopsi and Popsi at gun point as the others moved her into the cell and plopped her down on the bed. Then they all backed out of the cell and slammed the door shut.

"Glad to see you still with us," Mopsi smiled slightly.

"Yes well they took me before I could get my pain medication. I have to attempt to heal myself or I will be unable to focus. The moment that happens, Morrible wins," Elphaba said.

"We don't know if the cell has been enchanted," Popsi reminded her.

"Do yourselves a favor, hide under the beds. They will protect you. Any blow back will be directed at me, anyway," she told them.

"At least wait until after you've eaten something," Mopsi suggested. He pulled back the covers on his bed and grabbed a small crust of bread that he'd saved from his breakfast. Elphaba had not had a chance to eat and she suspected that was on purpose.

"You shouldn't have. What if the guards caught you?" She asked, gratefully accepting the bread and slowly tried to break off small bits that would be easier to chew.

"Nothing good would have happened but I figured it was worth the risk. Besides, we could be expecting a visit from the fish woman later today. The guards have been attempting to clean things up and they only do that when we have a dignified guest coming," Mopsi said.

"She'd actually come down here?" Elphaba was surprised as she continued to savor the bread.

"On a rare occasion it has been known to happen. Can't think of why else they'd be cleaning seeing as they don't normally," Popsi spoke up. Elphaba nodded and swallowed the last of the small piece of bread. It had made her feel a little better, or at least enough to try this crazy stunt. Seeing she was finished with her meager breakfast, the two Munchkins hid under their beds and watched to see what would happen.

Meanwhile, Fiyero paced about in his office. He was in way over his head and needed help but didn't know who to turn to. There was a knock on his door and he quickly took a seat before entreating the person to enter.

"Captain, I thought you'd like an update," Lieutenant Zetti poked his head inside the door.

"On what?" Fiyero was confused.

"The condition of the prisoner, sir," Zetti said.

"Yes, of course," Fiyero indicated that the Lieutenant should take a seat and he quickly moved into the room, closing the door behind him. Once settled, Zetti quickly got to business.

"The surgery was a success according to Doctor Smythe but he tried to put up an argument with Morrible that keeping someone as sick as the Witch in Southstairs, wouldn't be good for her longevity. Seems the good doctor would prefer to stick to his oath, no matter who the patient is," he said.

"Well I don't imagine that he became a doctor just to watch the people he worked for kill his patients," Fiyero pointed out.

"True enough. I have yet to discover why the fish woman hasn't just gotten on with the trial that she promised was coming. I mean, if the Witch has done what Morrible has claimed, would it not be an open and shut case? Wouldn't Oz rest better, knowing that the matter has been dealt with?" Zetti questioned.

"This is why we are soldiers. That decision is way above our pay grade," the Captain told him.

"I suppose you are right sir. Bigger minds and all that. Thought you should know as well, Sergeant Dumb-dumb is out of the infirmary and has been knocked down in rank to Corporal. I gave him a nice assignment while he recuperates," Zetti had a penchant for making up names and Fiyero assumed "Dumb-dumb" was actually the man that had shot Elphaba, Mohir.

"Oh and what is that?" The Arjiki Prince raised an eyebrow.

"Mucking out the royal stalls," Zetti said without skipping a beat.

"I think that should suffice in the humiliation department. We'll be lucky if he doesn't just quit," Fiyero chuckled slightly.

"We should be so lucky sir. He's a disgrace to the uniform. I never understood how he got to Sergeant in the first place," the Lieutenant shook his head.

"I appreciate the sentiment. Anything else on the docket today?" The Captain wondered.

"Supposedly, the fish woman is making a trip to Southstairs today but has not asked for any guards to join her. The Wizard seemed distracted when this tumbled out during our meeting but I didn't bother to question it," Zetti told him.

"Probably to see the prisoner. Odd, she'd go herself. What of Lady Glinda?" Fiyero wanted to know.

"I have no idea. She seemed distracted too. No one seemed to be paying attention; myself excluded sir, of course," the Lieutenant said.

"Of course," Fiyero smirked. Just then there was a pounding on the door and Fiyero called for the person to enter.

"Flying Monkeys sir!" Private Roth blurted out. He was breathing heavily having run from his position at the walls into the Palace and up to the Captain's office.

"Where?" Fiyero asked.

"They're approaching the Palace walls!" Roth managed.

"No one is to fire on them, is that understood?" Fiyero gave him a look. With a nod, Roth was back out the door, running back out to the walls.

"Not to fire on them? Won't there be questions about that?" Zetti asked as they quickly stood from their chairs and headed out the door after the Private.

"Worry about that later. The last thing I want are stray bullets hitting civilians," Fiyero said. Zetti nodded, that was a good point.


	5. Chapter 5

The Flying Monkeys hovered ten feet off the Emerald Palace's walls. They made sure to be above eye level of the troops and unreachable by the long spears. The Gale Force had their weapons trained on them but to their credit, had not fired per Fiyero's orders.

The Captain approached the walls and Zetti stood with him. He walked up to edge of the walls and looked at the situation. There were thirty to forty Flying Monkeys and hundreds of Gale Force. They could not win but Fiyero had a feeling that they would die trying, if it meant freeing Elphaba.

"I am surprised that you did not fire on us Captain," the Flying Monkey in the middle spoke Ozian better than most of the Gale Force did. That would be Elphaba's doing, Fiyero was sure of it.

"Can't be hitting the innocent civilians below. Besides, hardly seems fair given our numbers," Fiyero said.

"Since when has the Gale Force been fair?" The Monkey wanted to know.

"You must think us so on some level. Why else would you have come?" Fiyero challenged.

"We have come for a simple reason. Give us the Witch and we will not darken your doorway ever again. Do not at your own peril," the Monkey said.

"You know that I can't just hand over the most wanted criminal in Oz to you," Fiyero pointed out.

"The most wanted criminal sits on the throne and not where he belongs, in jail," came the reply.

"Being that way won't help your cause," the Captain said.

"You have no idea what has helped our cause. Now what is your answer," the Monkey wanted to know.

"It remains the same as I stated before – I cannot just hand her over to you," Fiyero told him.

"Then be prepared for what comes next," with that the Monkey screeched at his companions and they flew up into the sky and away from the Emerald City.

"What did he mean by that?" Zetti asked.

"I have no idea but whatever it is, it can't be good. I want the guard at the walls doubled and I want The Wizard, Madame Morrible, and Lady Glinda to stay inside the Palace. Any trip off site might be the opportunity that the Monkeys are looking for. Contact Southstairs and warn them of possible incursion," Fiyero ordered his second in command.

"Yes sir," the Lieutenant nodded and quickly got to work. The Captain headed back to his office. This might have been the chance to free Elphaba but with such a public demand, he had no choice but to bulk up security everywhere. He wondered what the Monkeys were playing at.

Meanwhile, the excitement at Southstairs was hard to miss. The Guards were running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Popsi watched them while Mopsi tended to Elphaba. The spell had not backfired as they had worried. It seemed that Morrible figured the green woman would never be stable enough to heal herself. Of course, Elphaba hadn't been able to heal herself, not yet. Given her physical weakness, all she managed was to get rid of the pain she'd been feeling.

Inwardly, she wondered why Mopsi cared so much for her. Not that he had any romantic feelings toward her, but he was making sure she was comfortable. He'd saved some of his food. She was unable to figure him out.

"Something weird is going on. I don't think the fish woman is coming anymore," Popsi said as he headed back to them.

"What makes you say that?" Mopsi asked.

"They've emptied the armory – picked up shields," his brother explained.

"That can't be good," Elphaba said.

"No, it cannot," Mopsi agreed.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just as a heads up, I'm not sure I'll be able to post next week. I hope you're enjoying the story and if I don't post next week, I will definitely post the week after. Thanks for sticking with me.

The heightened security lasted into the night. Mopsi had helped Elphaba into a mostly sitting position in order for her to eat her dinner before he started tucking into his. Slop and bread was on the menu again. Once again she found herself wondering what the Munchkin's angle was. Popsi had kept his eyes on the guards who were changing shifts.

"Well whatever was going on, it didn't happen as fast as they thought it would," Popsi said as he approached them.

"What possibly could have gotten their panties in a bunch like that?" His brother wondered.

"Enough of a bunch that meant they weren't allowing the fish woman to show up," Elphaba pointed out.

"Indeed. I mean no offense but other than you, who would garner such attention?" Mopsi wondered.

"There can be only one possibility. The Flying Monkeys," she admitted.

"They would attempt to free you? Aren't they outnumbered?" Popsi asked.

"Well they are but I told them to flee before I attempted to confront what happened in Munchkinland. I cannot say what happened after that," the green woman told them.

"Perhaps you had more friends than you were aware of," Mopsi said.

"Perhaps but not many are ready to take on the Gale Force. They are conditioned to be brutal as evidenced by their behavior," Elphaba said.

"Very true. Morrible is not someone to be trifled with either, though I don't need to tell you that," Mopsi frowned.

"I got captured. Whatever resistance there was is now officially outgunned with no magical person on their side. Of course all I heard might have been rumors. Whispers of hope of a downtrodden people," she half heaved a sigh, careful of her injuries.

"We mustn't give up hope," Popsi said.

"How long have you boys been here? You still have hope after everything you've been through?" Elphaba raised an eyebrow.

"Hope is what keeps us alive," Mopsi told her.

"What the hell did you two do in order to end up in here?" She had to know.

"We challenged your father. Not the best move," Popsi said.

"But he wouldn't have handed you over to the Gale Force. He would have made an example of you. Trust me," Elphaba said.

"He did. He punished our family first and then made it so that we ended up here. The former Captain was all too happy to help your father quell any questions. You see your father wasn't so sure about the Wizard but when he was offered an opportunity to have any possible insurrections squashed and not have to spend a Munchkin dime, well that changed his mind," Mopsi explained.

"Sounds like my father. What did he do to your family, if I can ask," she said.

"He told them that we were executed for our crimes and that if they did not want any more shame to come upon them, they would forget us. He then took money to supposedly bury us in unmarked graves, in a spot never to be revealed. The only reason we know this is because a former prisoner here told us before he lost his life in an escape attempt," Mopsi heaved a sigh.

"I am truly sorry. What did you do to warrant such treatment? I'm pretty sure I'd remember something taking my father's focus off of me," Elphaba told them. She refused to tell them what had been happening to her behind the walls of the Governor's mansion.

"Lights out you scum!" came a shout from a guard and just like that the nearby candle was extinguished, leaving only the paltry light from the guards torches to indicate where the walls and floor were. If they talked now, they would be dragged from their cells and beaten. Silence was the rule. However, Elphaba wanted to know what Mopsi and Popsi were hiding. She felt a pat of a hand on her forearm and Mopsi helping her lay down. He covered her in a filthy rag that passed as her blanket and retreated to his own bed. They would talk tomorrow.


	7. Chapter 7

Three days would pass and Elphaba was feeling better, but she wasn't well enough to cast a new healing spell. The guards had seemingly relaxed – fallen back into their normal routines. Still neither hide nor hair of Morrible or anyone else that was considered important.

Mopsi had explained what exactly Frex had viewed as terrible enough to punish them to a sentence of life behind bars in Southstairs. The two had collected a list of things that they wanted to have change in Munchkinland. This list had signatures of ten-thousand Munchkins who agreed. It had been a civilized way of approaching change in the government but Frex took it as an affront, a sign that a possible violent revolution. So Mopsi and Popsi were arrested. The two were concerned that those that had signed their names would be arrested as well. However, they never heard of anything. That many arrests would bring attention to what was going on and it was attention that the Governor didn't want. Frex exacted his punishment and the peoples of Munchkinland were doomed to follow the path they had.

Elphaba had frowned at the end of the story. Her father was vindictive. Anything that questioned his power or position did make him unable to control his rage. Probably the only reason that Frex didn't physically lash out was because that would have affected his public image if it got out.

"Hey, do you hear that?" Popsi suddenly spoke up as Mopsi was helping Elphaba sit up; her back was bothering her again. The two of them looked at him and strained to listen. They both gave him confused looks.

"That!" He pointed into the sky as if they could see the sound but this time Elphaba heard something.

"I heard it, but I don't know what it is," she admitted. Mopsi strained to hear what his cohorts had heard but they were all surprised as a guard went sailing by the door of their cell and slammed into the nearby wall.

"Hide!" Mopsi barked. Popsi scrambled under his bed while his brother helped Elphaba down onto the floor. They rolled under the nearest bed as a second guard went flying past the cell door.

"What the hell is going on out there?" Mopsi asked.

"I have no idea and I'm not sure I want to know," Elphaba admitted. Perhaps it was an attempted prison riot. Or maybe it was someone's hairbrained attempt to escape. That's when she heard a familiar voice.

"Mistress! Mistress!"

"Chistery! In here!" She called to her most loyal of friends before carefully crawling out from under the bed. At the cell door, the Flying Monkey appeared. He used a set of keys that he'd removed from an unconscious guard's waistband. Calling to his brothers and sisters, others rushed to his aid.

"We must move quickly," he said.

"They must come with me," Elphaba told him as the powerful Monkey carefully scooped her up off the floor and held her in his arms.

"As you wish. Come," he instructed Mopsi and Popsi. The two Munchkins looked at each other but quickly decided that this was their chance at freedom. They followed the Flying Monkeys toward the exit. As they neared their freedom, they noticed that almost all the guards were crumpled in heaps on the floor.

"Hurry Chistery. We must go before anyone sounds the alarm," the unfamiliar voice from the exit. The leader of the Flying Monkeys screeched at his fellow Monkeys. They quickly dispersed to certain cells and opened the doors. Mopsi and Popsi watched as people exited their prisons, some for the first time in years.

"You are free. Go," Chistery told them before heading outside. The other Monkeys followed.

"Are we clear Brother?" Chistery asked a large brown bear who had been standing watch.

"We are for now. We must disperse," the bear told him.

"Good luck. You know what to do," Chistery smiled before taking to the skies. Two others scooped up Mopsi and Popsi and headed for the skies.

"This isn't safe," Popsi was nervous.

"Better than being in prison," Mopsi was enjoying his flight. The Flying Monkeys flew on for what seemed like forever before landing just outside a large wood.

"Where are we?" Elphaba asked.

"Our new home," Chistery smiled as he gently set her down, "you are not well Mistress. We must get you to a safe place to rest," he said.

"I am tired," Elphaba admitted. Chistery nodded and screeched. From the woods came Mrs. Dillamond and another large brown bear.

"Come, we must hide," Mrs. Dillamond smiled at her.


	8. Chapter 8

"How is that possible?!" Morrible shouted at the top of her lungs. The poor man she was busy reaming out in her office was the warden at Southstairs.

"They attacked near a shift change! They brought large animals to fight with them. Once they were down in the tunnels, my men didn't stand a chance!" Warden Hafiz tried to explain from his seat in front of her desk.

"Someone had to help them!" Morrible was furious and paced behind her desk.

"No one would be that stupid. They know better than to cross the Wizard and yourself," Hafiz said.

"He's right. No one would be that stupid. They were probably watching the prison. Its location is no secret and with one way in and the same way out, they'd be able to tell when the shifts were changing," the Wizard spoke up from his seat on the plush couch behind the chairs in front of the Grand Vizier's desk. Morrible frowned and finally took a seat behind her large Quoxwood desk.

"This can't go unpunished," she said.

"We cannot make a big show of this. The general public will panic," the Wizard told her.

"I have sworn the guards to secrecy, those that haven't ended up in the infirmary, anyway," Hafiz tried to assuage their concerns.

"The news will get out but for now we treat it as rumors and hearsay. Our bigger problem is that once the green one is perfectly healthy, she will make herself known," the Wizard said.

"Then how do we catch her if I cannot send Gale Force troops out after her and those Monkeys?" Morrible wanted to know.

"We must be discreet. Perhaps the Captain and a few men he trusts would be enough," the Wizard told her.

"I will talk to him," the fish woman heaved a sigh.

"What can I do? I'm down seven men and there are other prisoners on the loose," Hafiz pointed out.

"Forget the other prisoners. You compiled a list and none of them would be dumb enough to resurface. Interesting that those who were released by the Monkeys, were not hard criminals but political prisoners," Morrible narrowed her eyes at the warden.

"Most of them had been imprisoned before I took the job," Hafiz reminded them.

"Very true. Loose lips and whatnot. Perhaps a visit to the old warden is in order. Give the Captain his orders and then visit Warden Refik. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some other business to attend to," the Wizard stood up and headed for the door.

Out in the hallway, Lieutenant Zetti, who had been listening at the door, quickly scrambled down the hall, looking for a place to hide. He managed to find an alcove just as the Wizard exited the room; Warden Hafiz was right behind him. Luckily, the two turned in the opposite direction from his hiding place. Scoping out the hallway, he continued down the way he started, away from Morrible's office and the Wizard.

There was a knock on Fiyero's door, and he bade the person to enter without looking up from his paperwork. He wasn't exactly focused. While he was glad that Elphaba had escaped, he had no idea where she was, and he knew she wasn't one hundred percent.

"Fifi," that caused him to look up.

"Lin, are you ok?" Fiyero put down the paperwork and came around his desk. Carefully, he pulled her into his arms. His brain quickly noted how different she felt compared to Elphaba.

"Elphie has escaped. You know that Morrible and the Wizard will do all they can to find her," that was the first time he'd heard Glinda mention her friend by her nickname in a long time. Still unsure where her loyalties lie, Fiyero said nothing about his feelings. The fact of the matter was, he was not in love with the blonde. He was in love with Elphaba – it was both a wondrous and dangerous thing.

"I know but I need to know why they wanted her in the first place. To be honest, her getting shot could have worked to Morrible and the Wizard's advantage. Instead they ordered surgery to save her. What are their intentions?" He asked.

"I honestly don't know. They have been keeping me at arm's length," Glinda admitted.

"We need to find out," Fiyero said. There was a knock on his door and he released Glinda before heading to the door. It was Lieutenant Zetti.

"Sir, we need to talk," he said.


	9. Chapter 9

"So how long have you known those two?" Chistery asked, pointing at Mopsi and Popsi, who were on the other side of the home, helping Mrs. Dillamond with dinner. The Flying Monkey was visiting Elphaba at the home of the Dillamonds. In the forest, Chistery and his brethren had found a group of Animals. They were hiding, afraid that they too would lose their ability to talk, as poor Doctor Dillamond had. They had created a small village, wood and mud had been at their disposal, so they used it to create mostly one-room shelters to live in.

"They were in my cell at Southstairs when I was tossed in there. They have been wronged by my father," she told him. Mrs. Dillamond had given up her bed for the injured woman, despite Elphaba's objections. Other beds were being made, so that the three escapees could avoid sleeping on the floor.

"That doesn't mean we should believe them," Chistery pointed out.

"I don't necessarily trust them but they have been nothing but kind to me. You know that's a rarity. Something makes Mopsi treat me like his own daughter. I haven't figured out why," she admitted.

"I will have them watched then. Onto our larger problem…" he started.

"The Wizard and his fish woman," Elphaba said.

"Yes. Not that I'm not grateful for you being alive, but we have to ask, why," Chistery told her.

"No, I agree. Morrible wants to use me for something and I don't think it was for a public trial," she frowned.

"Where is the Grimmerie?" He wanted to know.

"That was my only thought. Morrible must have gotten her hands on it and she must not be able to read it. The spell that brought you and the others into your current position is probably only a fraction of what horrible spells that can be found there. Nessa almost killed Boq, had I not been able to transform him into a Tin Man. Not exactly a nice thing for him, as you can imagine," Elphaba heaved a small sigh, still very cognizant of her healing body.

"How did she do that? I thought you took it away from Nessa and hid it," Chistery said.

"I thought so too. Maybe the reason she kept me alive wasn't to read the book…" she paused.

"She wants you to find it or worse lead her to it," he frowned.

"That would be the point. Once she has it and me, then she must think that she can somehow force me to do her bidding," Elphaba continued to think. What could Morrible possibly have? Nessa was dead, as was Frex. Not that using him would have been some sort of motivation for her, even if he was alive. No one, not even Glinda, knew about her and Fiyero, so she doubted that Morrible knew.

"She must intend to harm Glinda," she spoke up.

"The people love Glinda. That would be stupid," Chistery said.

"Doesn't mean that she couldn't have an 'accident'. Look what the weather supposedly did to my sister," Elphaba pointed out.

"Or worse, she could blame you. There might be a chance of clearing your name now. You 'kill' Glinda and there will be no coming back from that," the Flying Monkey shook his head.

"Then we had best make sure that I don't fall into their hands. The book must stay where I buried it. As long as we stay apart, Morrible cannot carry out any devious plans she has," she told him.

"Agreed. Get some rest. I will check in with the others," Chistery said. Then he leaned down, kissed her forehead, and left.

"He must be good friend to break you out of Southstairs and worry over you so," Mopsi popped over, a bowl of soup in his hands.

"The best. What have you brought me?" She asked, carefully propping herself up.

"Some soup. Mrs. Dillamond had some potatoes and some other things she collected from our surroundings," he explained, handing her the bowl.

"Sounds better than prison food. How are you two holding up?" Elphaba wanted to know before sipping some of the soup. It was better than prison food.

"It's weird to be free after so many years but we are grateful," Mopsi smiled.

"We must enjoy it while we can. Someone will come looking for me," she told him.

"Then we'll enjoy and do what we must. Hopefully one day we can go home," he said.

"Hopefully," Elphaba smiled slightly.


	10. Chapter 10

Fiyero had retreated to his desk and was soaking in what Lieutenant Zetti had told him. Morrible was certainly on her way to his office and the Captain was glad to know what was coming first. Glinda was not happy to hear the news that her fiancé would be heading back out into the wild, even if it was to find their friend.

"Sir let me assemble trustworthy men for the trip. We can't have any of Morrible's spies in our midst," Zetti pointed out. The last thing they needed was a snitch. While the Lieutenant did not know about Fiyero and Elphaba, he worried that this would be the perfect opportunity to assassinate the Captain and blame it on the Witch. He did not voice his concerns given that Lady Glinda was in the room.

"I concur. We need men who we can trust. Who can be left in charge while we're gone?" Fiyero asked.

"I trust Lieutenant Bayram. I would suggest him," Zetti said.

"Ok very good. While we're gone, Glinda, you must see if you can find out what their plans are. We need to be prepared. The Wizard seems to be the most pliable. Start with him," Fiyero told her. It was then that there was a knock on the Captain's door. He bade the person to enter and Morrible was surprised to see the Lieutenant and Glinda there.

"I need to speak to you privately, Captain," Morrible said.

"If you two would excuse us," Fiyero smiled at them and the two left the room, each having their assignments.

"The Witch…" she started.

"Escaped, yes I know," he said. She gave him a look, not sure how he could have found out.

"Do you really think that you could keep something like that from me? After all, I received requests for more medical personnel down to Southstairs and I quickly sent medics to assist," Fiyero said.

"Why would they contact you?" Morrible raised an eyebrow.

"The guards at the prison are a division of the Gale Force, I am their commander. Who else should they have contacted?" Fiyero raised his own eyebrow.

"The Warden didn't mention that," she said.

"Well I'm sure he had a lot on his plate. Trying to find out what had just happened, injured men, and escaped prisoners. I'm guessing your visit is regarding this incident, correct?" the Captain asked.

"Correct," Morrible seemed to be irritated.

"I can have my men track down the escapees. I was waiting on a list of who got away from the Warden," Fiyero said.

"There is only one we care about, the Witch. It was her Monkeys that orchestrated it. We want her back, uninjured this time," she said.

"May I ask why I am to bring her back alive? Would it not solve everyone's problem if she were gone forever?" The Captain wondered.

"The Wizard has asked for her to be brought to him alive. I do not question it, and neither should you. Gather a small team and head out in the morning," with that the fish woman turned on her heel and was out of the door. Fiyero frowned as he knew that was probably a lie. While the rest of Oz assumed the Wizard was in control, those inside the Emerald Palace knew better. Getting up from his desk, he headed for his room. He needed to pack a bag and then meet up with Zetti.


	11. Chapter 11

The morning came early and Fiyero was up and out of bed in a hurry. A quick shower and he was down near the stable in short order, with his saddle bag. His horse was being saddled when he arrived by the stable boy, Aziz.

"Good Morning Captain. I've gotten Phantom ready for you," he smiled. The horse whinnied and stamped the ground in front of him.

"We've got a long few days in front of us boy. Save your energy," Fiyero smiled as he patted the horse's neck. The black stallion stood at sixteen hands (or sixty-four inches) tall; had a long-arched neck and well-chiseled, short-eared, concave forehead, down to his slightly convex nose. His powerful, sloping shoulders and compact muscular body allowed him to have a brisk, high-stepping trot to match his short, strong legs. Fiyero often let his mane go untrimmed as it was long, thick, and wavy, which added to the horse's presence. He had been lucky to find such a wonderful horse; one that could be as gentle as a lamb but also willing to jump into anything headfirst.

"I have the other horses ready but I am not sure where the men are sir," Aziz said.

"Thank you. I'm sure Zetti is just dragging them out of bed," the Captain smirked.

"I heard that former Warden Refik is missing. Where will you start your search if he could not assist?" The stable hand wondered.

"You heard that?" Fiyero was surprised.

"People talk around me sir. Like I'm not even here," Aziz admitted.

"Well if you hear anything you think is relevant; let me know when I get back," the Vinkun said.

"I could get in trouble sir," the stable hand was unsure if he wanted to eavesdrop on purpose.

"Not asking you to spy. Just listen. You hear something, let me know. How's your mother doing?" Fiyero suddenly changed the topic.

"Not well sir. A doctor is expensive," Aziz told him. Fiyero reached into his pocket and when he pulled it out, there were five gold coins.

"Take her to a doctor. If that isn't enough, you tell the doctor that Captain Fiyero says to bill him," he said. He then went into the saddle bag, pulled out one piece of paper, his wax stamp, and a pen. Putting the paper on the wall, he scratched out a message, before folding it up. Heading to a nearby candle on the wall, he dropped a few drips onto the paper and stamped it.

"Hand him this if he doesn't believe you," Fiyero said, handing the letter over to the younger man, before putting his supplies back.

"Sir?" Aziz was surprised. He'd always been treated well by the Captain but this was incredibly generous for just a stable hand.

"You are a good man trying to do well for your family. You deserve to be rewarded. Now, I'm going to track the boys down. We need to be on the road before Morrible finds out that we're not," with that, he headed outside.

"Ah Lieutenant, there you are," Fiyero said as Zetti approached with the team of men he'd handpicked. Private Roth, Corporal Norris, Corporal Bock, and Sergeant Duncan rounded out the squad and the Vinkun approved.

"We were securing our Bird, Captain," Private Roth was carrying a regal looking falcon on his wrist. He had on a leather glove so the bird of prey's talons didn't bore into his arm.

"Ah very good. Mount up. We'll start at Southstairs and work our way out. Warden Hafiz has promised us some of his private stock of beer for the journey," Fiyero waggled his eyebrows.

"Better get a move on then," Zetti chuckled. They soon were all on their horses and heading for the gate. Above them, Morrible watched from her window. The Captain was on his way to find the Witch. She wasn't sure how he'd capture the Witch but at this point, it was only one piece of the plan. There was other work to be done.


	12. Chapter 12

By now, Elphaba was feeling well. She'd managed to complete a healing spell the night before and was back to her normal self. Climbing out of bed, she had washed up quickly before going to find Chistery.

"Mistress Elphaba, very good to see you out of bed," Chistery smiled. He and the other Flying Monkeys were eating breakfast around the campfire outside of one of the mud houses. The other Monkeys looked up and smiled at her.

"It is good to see you all. I am glad you are safe," she smiled at them and signed with her hands. Chistery and the other Animals had been trying to help them learn how to speak but, in the meantime, they communicated using their hands.

"Have you had breakfast? You should eat," the leader of the Flying Monkeys said.

"I should eat, there is a long day ahead of us," Elphaba told him.

"What are your plans?" Chistery was confused.

"We need to confirm that Morrible doesn't have the Grimmerie. I do not want to lead her to it but the only way to go to the spot where I buried it, is physically. Unless someone has a crystal ball…" she explained.

"You are a wanted woman, doubly so now that you've escaped. Going to the location, especially in the daylight, would be dangerous," he shook his head.

"He is right, Mistress Elphaba," it was a large brown Bear.

"This is Brother Shashtsoh. He aided in your escape and is quite handy with carpentry," Chistery introduced the Bear.

"It is good to meet you. I really do not need to be called Mistress or Miss, Elphaba will do just fine," she told him.

"Yes, well I keep telling Chistery to drop 'Brother', but he refuses. He views me as family for helping to save his. Sometimes, titles, even if they be honorary, just stick," Shashtsoh smiled. Elphaba nodded.

"Do you worry this spell book could get into the fish woman's hands?" The Bear wanted to know.

"Well she cannot read it but if she gets her hands on it, that doesn't mean she won't try to force Glinda to do it or even try again herself. They cannot read it. For some reason, only I can read it. The bigger problem is that if you try to read the spells, they backfire; wreaking terrible havoc upon anyone nearby," the green woman said.

"That's not good," Shashtsoh said.

"No, it isn't but I don't like this whole going to check on the book idea. If anyone should see us, it could spell disaster," Chistery pointed out.

"It could also be a way to catch both you and the book. Perhaps we should send someone that no one will be looking for," the Bear told them.

"I couldn't ask anyone to risk themselves. It's deep in Morrible territory," Elphaba frowned. By now, Mopsi and Popsi had exited the Dillamond's house and headed toward the group.

"Good morning," Mopsi smiled.

"Good morning," Elphaba smiled.

"Why the long faces?" Popsi asked, wondering what they had interrupted.

"Oh, just the usual, incredibly dangerous mission, not sure how we're going to do it," Chistery wanted to gauge their reactions.

"Can we help?" Mopsi wanted to know.

"You're wanted men too you know," Shashtsoh pointed out.

"Plus, no offense, but Munchkins would stick out where we need to go," Chistery said.

"Look, it's better if I go alone. I can wait until dark, use my broom, and get in and out. The more people we involve, the more likely something bad will happen," Elphaba told them.

"We can't risk you getting caught again," Chistery shook his head.

"Seems we're going in circles…" Mopsi said. That's when they heard a screech overhead. Everyone looked up and saw a large bird of prey. The Hawk landed on Shashtsoh's shoulder.

"What news Henry?" the Bear asked.

"A small group of Gale Force soldiers set out from Southstairs not long ago. They are looking for Miss Elphaba. Seems the fish woman isn't done with her yet," the Hawk told them.

"Everyone, we need to buckle down the village! Prepare for a possible evacuation!" Chistery announced, which caused a commotion as everyone started bustling about.

"They don't know where we are so we should be safe," Mopsi said.

"The Captain is with them. He is a Vinkun and very good at the hunt," Henry spoke up.

"I know. As long as we covered our tracks, we will be hard to find. No one should venture far from the village. We don't want to take the chance that someone could accidentally lead them to us," Elphaba said.

"You were right. It is going to be a long day," Chistery said.


	13. Chapter 13

Fiyero and his men were looking for clues. In the back of his head, the Captain hoped they'd find nothing. If they returned to the Emerald City after a week or so empty-handed, Morrible could not say that they weren't looking hard enough. A small team such as themselves had a ridiculously small chance of finding Elphaba anyway. That thought made him tug on Phantom's reins and the horse stomped the ground.

"Oi, what's wrong Captain?" Corporal Bock asked, his brown workhorse stopped too. They were about a thirty-minute ride from Southstairs and the tracks they had been following seemed to have completely disappeared – part of that could have been thanks to the Yellow Brick Road.

"Anyone else feel like we're being set up?" Fiyero suddenly wanted to know.

"How do you mean?" Zetti was confused. He rode an Appaloosa horse.

"Go with me here. We, our small group of six plus our falcon friend, are supposed to hunt all of Oz to find one person, who may or may not even still be in Oz," the Vinkun said.

"Seems like an impossible task, sir," Sergeant Duncan spoke up. He rode a grey mare who was probably the most patient of the group. She was used to going over complicated terrain and would make Duncan the lookout from higher location than their current one.

"Based on some assumptions though, we have reduced our search area," Private Roth told them. He rode a black mare, but she was not like Phantom. The fastest of the group, they would send Roth if for some reason the falcon was not with them.

"Ok. Run it out for me Roth," Fiyero said.

"Well we know she would not head to Munchkinland. They celebrated the death of the other witch and ran for cover when she appeared there. No one there would hesitate to call for the authorities. She would not stay in the Emerald City as that is crawling with troops and it would be too easy for her to be seen," the Private started.

"And yet the escape was seen by no one. An underground prison in the Emerald City, in the Northtown section of the City," Fiyero frowned.

"They struck at a good time. Change of shift, near sunset, when the bulk of the population would already be in their homes," Zetti pointed out.

"Couldn't have been better if the Witch had planned it herself," Corporal Norris said.

"Seems too convenient doesn't it?" Bock wondered.

"Like they had inside help?" Fiyero asked.

"Would be my first guess, sir. I mean near sunset is smart, but the shifts change at different times each week," Bock reminded them. That had been something that Fiyero had forgotten. One week the shifts would be seven to three, three to eleven, and eleven to seven. The next week they would go to six to two, two to ten, and ten to six and then the next week was back to the first week's schedule.

"So, we have a spy," Duncan said.

"Odd that Morrible didn't mention that…" the Captain wondered if the fish woman had purposely held something back – testing him perhaps?

"Well I think it's safe to say that the Flying Monkeys helped them escape – they would leave no trail. The footprints we've been finding along the road are bear," Norris pointed out.

"The Shiz gate out of the city is definitely the way they went – it was the closest exit from the prison. Once out of the gate, the next step is where?" Zetti asked.

"That's the trick. There is a lot of ground between here and the first village," Duncan frowned.

"Send up our falcon friend. Let's see if he can see something we can't," Fiyero ordered. Private Roth told the falcon to seek and lifted his arm into the air. The mighty bird of prey took off.

"We should make camp here. Hopefully we'll get a lead from our falcon," Fiyero told them. The men pulled their horses a little way off the road, under a clump of trees and out of sight of the road.

An hour later, while the men ate dinner, the falcon returned. They hadn't heard him screech so they figured he found nothing. The waning sunlight was probably not helping. Private Roth made sure that the bird got some meat for his dinner. Fiyero asked Zetti for the map and the Lieutenant pulled it out of his saddle bag.

"Let's head for water. They would need a source of water; I'd say start within a day's ride. Unfortunately, being able to fly, could put them further out but it's a start," Fiyero said.

"A good plan. We'll need to refill our water as well," Sergeant Duncan nodded.

"So, who could be the spy?" Corporal Bock wondered.

"It is a good question," Fiyero told him. In the back of his mind, he knew he didn't help the Monkeys, as much as he would have wanted to. The thing was, he had no idea that the spy was right there, sitting in their camp.


	14. Chapter 14

Fiyero and the group made their way to the nearest creek. They walked their horses in the water, so their trail would be covered. Fiyero continued to check the banks for signs of continual path use. There were a few spots, but tracks were mostly obscured. They did stop so he could check the tracks and see what animals were afoot.

"All right let's pull over," Fiyero ordered when they reached a fork in the creek. They had been on this track for over two hours and no odd signs gave the Vinkun thoughts of where Elphaba could be. On one hand, he was hoping that he wasn't leading the troops directly to her but on the other, he hadn't found anything that indicated odd prints (like hooves) from the woods or heavily trafficked paths. Zetti handed him the map before they all moved their horses onto dry land. The animals were glad to dry off their feet as they whinnied stepping into the soft earth on the bank of the creek.

"This creek narrows and ends in a swamp. They won't be there. The water would not be good to drink and during the rains nothing would stay dry. However, the fork up ahead leads to a river. The water there would be mostly clean and provide fish. I suggest we head there," he said.

"An excellent choice sir. Should I send up our friend?" Private Roth asked.

"The tree cover might make it difficult for him to spot anything but give it a shot," the Captain nodded. Roth let the bird loose and it was off toward the tops of the trees. The group forged ahead back into the creek until the route began to widen. Then they picked the side of the growing water way that was closest to the Yellow Brick Road. Soon the river rushed by and the falcon returned, once again empty handed.

"How long should we follow this?" Sergeant Duncan wanted to know.

"Until we hit the next town. We'll spend the night and better plot a course. I want to check in and see if anyone has gotten any weather updates," Fiyero pointed to the darkening clouds on the horizon.

"Would rather not get caught out in that," Zetti nodded.

"Agreed," Corporal Norris said. The group began to move down river heading toward the nearest Gillikin village. Fiyero still saw nothing and was beginning to wonder if his idea was a poor one.

"Something weighs on you Captain," the Lieutenant said as he pulled along his friend and superior.

"We are riding farther and farther away from Glinda, leaving her with the wolves," the Captain shook his head.

"I ordered Bayram to stick to her like glue, sir. I had anticipated that leaving her alone with the fish woman would be a bad idea. I do not trust her," Zetti admitted.

"You and me both," Fiyero nodded. They continued on down the river's edge as the storm clouds gathered in their direction. What they didn't know was that storm clouds were gathering in the Emerald City.

"Lieutenant, I really do not need you to follow me everywhere," Glinda said.

"I was given orders from the Captain," he told her.

"I can appreciate that but I'm not an infant," the blonde reminded him.

"It's not you that the Captain is worried about. He knows you can take care of yourself. What he worries about is the side you don't see Madame Morrible coming from," Bayram explained.

"He has a point. I think I know what she is up to, but I have no proof," Glinda admitted.

"is proof absolutely necessary? Perhaps word to the Captain would be enough," the Lieutenant wondered.

"He is too far away to assist. I cannot make a move with him and the support of men like you. I think we all know how fanatical the followers of the Wizard are. If I cannot prove that Morrible is acting behind his back, then they will come for me," the blonde pointed out.

"Then we must be careful," he said.

"I have a plan for that," Glinda smirked.


	15. Chapter 15

Word had spread through Oz like wildfire. Despite Morrible trying to keep it quiet, no one had heard from the Captain and his team in three days. The fish woman wondered if Glinda had let it slip after one of their meetings to a member of the press, but she figured that anyone in the Palace could have spilled the beans. The walls had ears and she knew they were not entirely secure. Though lately Morrible wondered if the Wizard wasn't the leak. He seemed to have his own agenda and was not sharing everything with her.

The Council demanded to know why the Captain had not appeared at the weekly meeting and why Lieutenant Bayram had. They felt that he was blowing them off, but they had not been made aware that Elphaba had escaped and that the team had been dispatched to find them. There was holy hell raised when they found out from the Emerald City's leading newspaper.

"Lady Glinda, I am sorry, but a sweep of the countryside has not yet yielded any results," Lieutenant Bayram announced as he entered her office. The sun began to sink behind the horizon on the fourth day.

"It was that storm. They had to be heading for shelter when they didn't make it," the blonde said from her seat at her desk.

"It was a nasty storm, but our knowledge of weather is not very accurate. The balloons can only do so much," Bayram told her, taking a seat on the other side of the desk.

"I know but didn't something seem odd about how quickly it moved in and how despite the wind, it was slow?" Glinda asked.

"You think Morrible did it?" The Lieutenant wondered.

"I wouldn't put it past her. I thought at first that maybe she'd use the Witch as a reason to separate us but this she can still spin. They were out looking for the Witch. Someone had helped her escape and he was only doing what he was sworn to do," Glinda slammed her fist down on the desk.

"We could never prove that. We need to move forward with your original plan," he said.

"Oh, I'm continuing with the plan. This has actually helped me. While Morrible tries to calm the public, I have been able to have the ear of the Wizard. I think I'm getting to him. The more I can get him to distance himself, the more I think I can get him to turn on Morrible. The only problem is the fish woman is more powerful than I am. If she tries to use her magic to defend herself, we're all in trouble," the blonde admitted.

"Who could defeat her?" Bayram asked.

"There is only one and she's not exactly someone we can reach out to," Glinda said.

"The Witch," he said. Glinda nodded. Everyone knew that the Wicked Witch was a powerful being, some speculated that she was more powerful than the Wizard and Morrible. What the general public didn't know was that the Wizard had no powers whatsoever and that it was all a show. What they also didn't know was that Morrible, while wanting to use Elphaba, was also afraid of her. The truth was, there was no limit to the green woman's power, something that maybe even Elphaba herself didn't know.

What Glinda didn't know was, that right now, Elphaba was pacing back and forth inside the Dillamond's house. The storm had caused everyone to batten the hatches in the village and hunker down. Once it was over, Chistery and a few other Flying Monkeys went up to survey the surrounding areas to see if there was damage to the paths they used to the get to fresh water or anything else they needed to be concerned about. They had not returned for days and that was unexpected. Mrs. Dillamond refused to let anyone go out and go looking for them. The Monkeys knew that if they had been caught, they were on their own.

"We need help!" that voice was most certainly the aforementioned Monkey. Elphaba did not hesitate to run out of the house. There were the Flying Monkeys leading horses who had Gale Force soldiers sitting on them. They seemed very worse for wear and Elphaba went to them without worrying about her own safety.

"They were caught out in the storm. Their gear was soaked, and they've been unable to light a fire or have any dry food," Chistery explained. The team had spent days without food and in soaking wet clothing. The air temperatures had not been warm as a cold front had been following the storm that rolled in.

"We need to get them warmed up and some good food. Let's make sure that none of them have caught a cold or worse," Elphaba took charge and looked at the men more carefully. They seemed dazed and weak from the lack of food. That's when she recognized one of them. Completely forgetting herself, Elphaba rushed to the horse.

"Yero," she helped him down. He smiled slightly at her but that was followed by a coughing fit and that made her nervous. She felt his head. Instead of being cold and clammy, it was hot. He had a fever.

"That's the Captain," one of the Animals recognized him.

"Leave him alone," Sergeant Duncan tried to get off his horse, but he was not strong enough and he fell. He too started to cough.

"We'll not harm him. None of you will be harmed while you are here," Chistery told him as he scooped him up off the muddy forest floor. The Sergeant gave him a confused look which was only compounded by the words that were heard next.

"They are friends Duncan. We are lucky for their help," Lieutenant Zetti spoke up as he was helped from his horse by Shashtsoh. Zetti clapped the Bear on the back and the Animal could tell that his friend was weak.

"You're the spy?" Private Roth was as white as a sheet and definitely not well.

"I'll not hide it," Zetti admitted.

"Then we might as well clear the air," Fiyero said before coughing again. This was the moment that Zetti feared. He assumed his Captain and friend would label him a traitor, instead he said,

"I'm in love with this woman and I'll not deny it any longer."

"Yero…" Elphaba was concerned that his now raging fever was clouding his judgement.

"Fae, no more hiding. I can't take it. We must band together and save Glinda. She is alone with the Wizard and Morrible. I have concerns that their plans do not include keeping her alive," he admitted.

"Well no one is going anywhere tonight. Come on," Chistery ordered. Mopsi and Popsi had seen the entire exchange, their eyes were wide. Two of the Wizard's own men just admitted to treason. What was going on?


	16. Chapter 16

"How are they?" Mrs. Dillamond asked Elphaba as she'd just left checking on Corporal Norris. The Goat stood near the door of the house and Chistery was not far away, helping to keep an eye on the soldiers. They had moved all the Gale Force soldiers into the same home and the original occupants dispersed amongst their friends for a couple of days – or however long this was going to last. As for Norris, he had fared better than some of the rest but he'd still developed a nasty cold. After casting a spell, the Corporal passed out, the sleep was much needed in helping him heal.

"A little worse for wear. Corporal Bock had the beginnings of pneumonia and a wound on his leg that seemed to have formed from the wet clothing rubbing on him. Private Roth barely weighs anything at all and he definitely had pneumonia. I think he was paying more attention to keeping the horses and the falcon alive than himself. Sergeant Duncan had to be whacked over the head before he'd let me touch him. I'm hoping that Chistery didn't give him a concussion on top of his pneumonia. Lieutenant Zetti has a similar cold to Corporal Norris but he's not too bad. I think he was more worried about his secret being out. And Yero…" Elphaba trailed off.

"He's in it deep now sister," Mrs. Dillamond said. The way she phrased it took the green woman a little aback. Admittedly though the Goat wasn't wrong.

"Yes he is. I really don't want to have to keep the soldiers here. It'll only bring more attention to us," Elphaba told her.

"Well this is how I see it. We have two options – one – you cast a memory spell on them and we send them away from here – or two – we make sure they're never found," the implication was there. Mrs. Dillamond had grown hard after the treatment of not only her husband but the other Animals.

"I don't like option number two. Fiyero trusts these men; otherwise he would not have brought them on this mission. Option number one isn't much better. Memory spells can be tricky. If I cast the wrong one, they'll forget everything they ever learned and be like infants or worse they could go even further and their bodies could forget how to breathe or how their hearts need to beat. We have to have another option. We cannot lose allies if Fiyero thinks that Morrible may be out to kill Glinda," Elphaba said.

"May I remind you that Glinda betrayed you and had a part in killing your sister?" Mrs. Dillamond asked.

"And she doesn't know that both Fiyero and myself have betrayed her. I'd say we're even," the green woman said.

"How could you say that?" The Goat wanted to know.

"As much as I loved Nessa, she did it to herself. I was forced to turn Boq into a Tin Man in order to save his life. She was harming thousands of Munchkins with her policies. She'd somehow become worse than Frex and I don't know where her head was at. The people of Munchkinland were on the edge of revolt and no one would have stood with my sister," Elphaba shook her head.

"Worse than your father? I know you have not forgotten about the scars that you bear, both from your father and the Munchkin people," Mrs. Dillamond gave her a look.

"I have not forgotten. I will never forget but there is no need for innocents to suffer needlessly. You know as well as I, that there were more innocents being harmed by Nessa than those who wished to see me harmed – well at least until Morrible labeled me the Wicked Witch," the green woman snapped back.

"So what now?" The Goat asked.

"We move forward. It is the only way to end this. It is the only way that I'll have a chance to be with Fiyero and the only chance we have at freeing the Animals, ridding Oz of both Morrible and the Wizard. Glinda will need to lead this land but she can only do that if she doesn't have assassins breathing down her neck," Elphaba said.

"You think that Glinda will give up Fiyero so easily?" Mrs. Dillamond wondered.

"No but she won't have a choice," the green woman's hand went into the pocket of her dress and the Goat noticed it but said nothing.

"Now, I must check on Fiyero and have some time to think. No one is finding us tonight but I cannot say that for tomorrow," with that Elphaba left her old friend and headed back to her beloved.

"She is strong. She can get through this," Chistery said having overheard much of the conversation. Mrs. Dillamond nodded but her concern did not waver. They needed Elphaba focused on the fight ahead.

Meanwhile, Glinda was speaking to the Wizard regarding finding Fiyero and the team that went out with him. Morrible was off dealing with something that Lieutenant Bayram had cooked up, so they had a few minutes to themselves in the throne room.

"I do apologize, Miss Glinda. I thought that being a Vinkun, the Captain would be safe. Not that I want to go there but what if it wasn't the storm that got them?" The Wizard wondered. He left his chair and went over to a chest and began digging around in it.

"I highly doubt that the Witch would have gotten them. Would it not be a feather in her cap to shout from the mountaintops that she had done something to the Captain of the Gale Force? To be honest, she could have announced that she'd escaped from Southstairs to add to her mystique but she did not do that either," the blonde said.

"You do have a point. Any luck finding the leak?" The Wizard was referring to the person or persons that let it slip that the Witch had gotten away.

"Sir, no one will admit to it. There are too many who knew and admitting to treason is not high on their 'to do' list," Glinda told him.

"Another good point. Ah there it is," the Wizard turned around a green bottle in his hand. The blonde's eyes grew large. She'd seen that bottle before.

"What is that?" The blonde cautiously asked.

"My Green Elixir. Something that I used to make back home," he said before making his way back to his seat and cracking open the bottle.

"How long have you been here again? Has it been about twenty years?" Glinda wondered as she watched him take a swig of the liquid.

"Just over nineteen but maybe it's twenty now," the Wizard said. The blonde's jaw almost hit the floor. She needed time to figure out how to use this information. It could be the key to bringing down the Wizard once Morrible was gone.


	17. Chapter 17

The morning came and most of the soldiers were well again – Private Roth had to put weight on but there was no spell for that. Elphaba's spells had done their job but the men's clothes were pretty much useless. There was no way the wool was going to dry out without shrinking.

"The last time I was this naked…" Fiyero waggled his eyebrows from under the covers of the bed he'd spent the night in. Elphaba had taken his underwear so they could be washed but that meant he wasn't going anywhere until they figured it out.

"You're incorrigible, you know that?" The green woman shook her head and rolled her eyes – glad he was in a corner of the room and that sheets had been strung up between the beds for a little privacy. She sat on the bed next to him and he held onto her left hand.

"I do what I can," he smirked.

"Yes well I would have liked if you'd kept the part about loving me to yourself. How much can we trust your men?" Elphaba whispered the question.

"Completely. I knew Zetti was the spy the whole time. I just didn't say anything to him about it because I didn't want to take the chance someone would overhear," Fiyero kept his tone just as low.

"Sergeant Duncan didn't seem so thrilled about my help. Chistery had to whack him over the head so I could cast a healing spell," the green woman looked at Fiyero.

"He'll be fine. I had Zetti round up the crew. If I didn't trust his judgement then I would have picked the crew myself," he smiled at her and then kissed her hand.

"I have missed you," Elphaba admitted, now closer to a normal tone.

"And I you. It's been killing me to lie to Glinda. She thinks she can get the Wizard to turn on Morrible but it's a dangerous game she's playing," Fiyero said.

"A very dangerous game. Perhaps it was fate that we found you. We need to make a move as Glinda will need to lead Oz into the future but she can't do that if something happens to her," Elphaba was concerned for her friend.

"I left her with a capable Lieutenant. He'll stay with her and protect her but we can't dally. I'm fairly certain this was an attempt on my life and Morrible hopes I don't come back," he told her. There was a knock on the door and Elphaba got up to answer it.

"Mopsi? Is everything ok?" She was concerned.

"I may be able to help with the clothes problem…" he started.

"We need the help. No one here is the right size to have the men borrow clothes," Elphaba said.

"There is a village not far from here that Chistery knows of. No one will recognize myself or Popsi. Perhaps we can borrow some clothes…" Mopsi let the thought hang there. No one here had money so "borrow" would be the best they could do.

"No need to borrow," Fiyero called out. He wrapped the blanket around him and walked to the door.

"In my saddlebag is money. Take it and go to town. If anyone asks any questions, you two need a new wardrobe and the larger clothes will come in handy for making socks and hats," he said.

"Captain, will they buy it? I really rather not go back to Southstairs," Mopsi said.

"Sure they will. Tell them that you got caught in the storm on the way to the village and your clothes were ruined. If they wonder why Munchkins are in Gillikin, say you were heading home after some business dealings and your friend is staying with your cart," Fiyero told him.

"I'll have Chistery and the boys keep an eye out for you in case of big trouble. Pretend you're being kidnapped," Elphaba said.

"I like this idea. We just need to borrow a horse," Mopsi let them know.

"Borrow Bock's. My horse will be too recognizable and the workhorse will sell the business aspect and the cart," Fiyero said. Mopsi nodded and quickly thanked them before heading off.

"Men! We need to talk! You can wear blankets like I am until Mopsi and Popsi come back," the Captain winked at Elphaba and she made sure that everyone was covered before she pulled the makeshift curtains back.

"I feel a bit ridiculous ma'am," Private Roth said as she reached him to pull back the sheet.

"You'll be better soon. Mopsi and Popsi have gone off to get clothing for you," Elphaba smiled. Roth nodded and the green woman excused herself to go talk to Chistery.

"Sir, how'd you get mixed up with the Witch?" Sergeant Duncan asked.

"We went to Shiz together. She's never been what Morrible portrays her to be. You'll do well to remember that since you're alive because of her," Fiyero said.

"Zetti did you know this?" Corporal Bock asked.

"I honestly had no idea. Shashtsoh and I go way back so when he asked to free her, I figured there had to be a good reason. Far as I can figure, she's the only one who can go toe to toe with Morrible," the Lieutenant said.

"She is. Glinda thinks she could take her on but, truth be told, she'll get herself killed. These Animals are good friends and we will need their help in taking down Morrible," Fiyero told them.

"We're with you sir," Roth said.

"I knew you would be. How many more in the Gale Force can we trust?" The Captain wanted to know.

"I think we're going to be in trouble there sir," Norris spoke up.

"I think he's right. While you've been trying to clean up the Gale Force there are still many who would sell out their own grandmother for a good chunk of change or promises of a position of power," Zetti said.

"Maybe, we'll need to get my parents involved," Fiyero frowned.

"The Vinkus, sir? They will with… what should we call her sir?" Roth asked.

"First, stop calling me sir. We've officially committed treason so you can call me Fiyero. Second, we'll call her Fae. Miss Fae to you," the Captain said.

"The question remains though," Duncan pointed out.

"Yes. That is a bit of a sticking point as I do not know how to contact them without…" that's when the door busted open, interrupting Fiyero. The men all turned their heads. Shashtsoh put a finger in front of his lips and then pointed to the roof. Fiyero understood what he meant and listened. There was a distinctive drum beat.

"Who could be making that noise?" Zetti whispered.

"That, my friends, is the unmistakable sound of Vinkun drums," Fiyero was almost giddy.

"What would they be doing near here?" Bock wondered.

"My guess is that news of our disappearance has made news around Oz. My parents must have sent troops out to find us," Fiyero said.

"Wouldn't that just piss off Morrible?" Norris asked.

"That's the point. My parents don't trust the Wizard or Morrible any more than we do," Fiyero smirked.


	18. Chapter 18

Lieutenant Dilek halted his troops at the river's edge. He and the troops had to make camp for the night, and he wasn't about to be far away from the water and food source. The woods made him nervous especially since the weather had changed so quickly.

"Lieutenant!" A cry went up from one of the men and he turned in his saddle.

"What is it?" He asked.

"Bear tracks sir. Leading down to the water," the private told him, pointing back toward where the rest of the troops were.

"Make sure the first thing we do is to build fires. That will keep them away," Dilek ordered. The private saluted and took off. The Lieutenant dismounted and tied his horse to a nearby tree. He'd pulled himself away from the others for a moment or two so he could think. Suddenly he heard rustling in the nearby bushes, and he raised an eyebrow. No animal would want to be near all of the men. The King and Queen had sent fifty men to find their son. These men were all mounted on horseback and could be smelled by power noses way before they would be spotted on the horizon.

"Who's there?" Dilek demanded. Out of the bushes hopped a Rabbit but definitely not a rabbit.

"Sir, please do not shoot me," the Rabbit said.

"I don't intend to. The Vinkus still recognizes Animals as citizens. I would like to ask why you snuck up on me," Dilek said.

"I have Prince Fiyero and his men. They are safe and well and when the Prince heard your drums, he asked me to find you," the Rabbit had still not given his name and Dilek was wondering if there was a reason.

"If he is well, why did he not come to us?" The Lieutenant wanted to know.

"Sir, things are more complicated, and he needs you to see for yourself," the Rabbit tried to explain. Dilek wasn't sure what to make of it but he felt that this creature would have no good reason to lie either. No one wanted to bring the force of the Vinkus down on them and that is exactly what would happen should he and his men go missing.

"All right I'll come and bring one of my men," the Lieutenant nodded. He turned around and headed toward the main area where the troops were putting their tents up and preparing the fires to keep the bears away.

"Ten Hut!" The troops bolted upright and turned to face their commander.

"I need Corporal Basheer! Sergeant Milligan! You're in charge!" With that he turned around and headed back to where the Rabbit was waiting. The men quickly did as they were told. No one questioned their leader, and they went back to work.

"Sir, I…" Basheer stopped himself when he saw the Rabbit.

"Lead the way," Dilek said. The Rabbit nodded and turned around. The three moved through the brush and forest. It was getting darker and both Vinkuns wondered if they should have brought a torch when the Rabbit called out. Before the Lieutenant and Corporal could do anything, there were Flying Monkeys.

"Complicated huh?" Dilek raised an eyebrow.

"Well Hase was not wrong. I am Chistery. Prince Fiyero is waiting for you," the Flying Monkey spoke up.

"Oh, I bet he is," the Lieutenant said. He looked over at the Corporal, whose mouth was hanging open. He elbowed him in the gut, and they followed Chistery. He led them to a small house and opened the door.

"Dilek, you old scoundrel. I wondered who Mom and Dad sent," Fiyero chuckled upon seeing his old friend. He was dressed in some civilian clothes and the Lieutenant noted they looked brand new.

"The only one who knows how to clean up your mess, but this is a hell of a thing," Dilek admitted.

"That it is Lieutenant," Elphaba moved from the corner of the room. She'd stayed in the shadows afraid of the reaction.

"I'm guessing you expect your parents to fall in line with whatever scheme you've cooked up?" Dilek's eyes did not leave the green woman as he spoke to Fiyero.

"Well I don't exactly intend to ask permission. There isn't time. Glinda is in danger," the Prince admitted.

"What did I tell you about that wandering eye?" his friend said. The Corporal couldn't believe how they talked to one another nor how the Lieutenant seemed to be so calm with the Wicked Witch standing right there.

"My eye doesn't wander. It belongs to Fae. She can take down Morrible, but she needs to get close to her," Fiyero explained.

"Why do I have the thought that I'm not going to like where this is going?" Dilek asked.


	19. Chapter 19

Two days later, the Vinkun troops beat their drums and marched into the Emerald City. People poked their heads out of windows or stopped what they were doing and turned around. At the head of the group was Fiyero, Captain of the Gale Force. Next to him were Lieutenant Dilek and the other men of the Gale Force search party.

"It's the Captain!" Someone shouted. A chorus of happy shouts went up. Fiyero was much beloved by the people of the Emerald City, not something former Captains could say. The Vinkun waved as the procession of troops made their way toward the Emerald Palace.

The noise of the drums and cries of the people alerted those inside the Palace that something big was going on. Glinda headed to her office window and saw that there were troops and they carried flags. Lieutenant Bayram knocked on her door and she bade him to enter.

"It's Vinkun troops ma'am. They bring the Captain and the others with them," he explained. The blonde practically bowled him over, running out of her office and down the hall. She made good time to the front door and the guards opened them for her. Fiyero and the rest were just entering the Palace walls.

"You gave me a heart attack!" The blonde shouted at him.

"I'm afraid there is a bigger one on the way," Lieutenant Dilek spoke up without addressing the blonde with her title. Glinda turned her head and gave him a look.

"Bring forth the prisoner!" Dilek shouted to his men. There was a bit of a scuffle toward the covered wagon in the middle of the troop column and then two burly men came forward, a smaller person between them. The Lieutenant had been right – Glinda almost had a heart attack.

"You… how…" she stuttered.

"Currently the Witch is the prisoner of the Vinkus. You must convince me to turn her over to the Wizard. If you cannot, she will travel back to the Vinkus and we will deal with her," Dilek ignored the stammering. By now the entire Palace has become aware of what was going on and Morrible exited the building. Fiyero could feel the bile rising in his throat.

"How dare you demand such a thing!" She practically screeched.

"I have every right, in the name of the King and Queen of the Vinkus. My men and I captured her. It is only due to Prince Fiyero's insistence that he be able to see Lady Glinda and tell her of the good news, that we make this stop," Dilek remained firm.

"You forget to whom you speak," Morrible said.

"I do not speak to the Wizard, so no, I do not forget," the Lieutenant had a pair of brass ones and Fiyero hoped that it would be enough to get Morrible to admit something, anything. What was going on had become a public spectacle as the Gale Force soldiers were listening intently. The guards at the gate had left it open, in anticipation of the Vinkuns leaving shortly after they arrived. However, now there were regular people gathering near the gate. They may not be able to hear everything but they could easily tell there was some sort of standoff.

"You wish to speak to the Wizard?" Morrible's anger was growing and Glinda looked at Fiyero, afraid the fish woman would blow her stack.

"I wish to hear from the Wizard, why we should leave her here. It's quite obvious that you could not keep her imprisoned. We will not have such troubles in the Vinkus," Dilek said.

"You let him talk to me this way?" Morrible turned her focus to Fiyero.

"He and the men captured him. Per Vinkun law, that makes her a prisoner of my mother and father. I am only a Prince and cannot override the law – one that has been passed down the generations to when we were a tribal people," Fiyero spoke up.

"So your allegiance only lies with the Vinkus?" The fish woman asked.

"My allegiance is to all of Oz and what is best for Oz. I know that punishment will be swift in the Vinkus. The Witch will not have a chance to escape," he told her. To be honest, he was surprised that no one had mentioned that they wanted to know how they supposedly managed to capture the most powerful witch in Oz.

"The Wizard will want an audience with you then. Captain, would you please bring the prisoner and as many of the troops as you require to keep everyone safe?" Glinda spoke up. Morrible was about to lose her cool but knew there were too many eyes on her.

"Lieutenant Zetti, take the horses to the stable. I'll only need Lieutenant Dilek and his men from here," Fiyero wanted his loyal comrades as far away from this as they could be.

"Yes sir," Zetti nudged the men toward the stables while Fiyero, Dilek, the two burly men, Elphaba, and five others stepped forward to enter the Palace.

"Follow me," Glinda smiled and lead them inside. The group made their way down the hall to the Great Room, where the Wizard met people in his fake persona. Once inside the room, the doors were closed and Glinda called out to the Wizard. His voice boomed,

"Why do you disturb me?" Before anyone could do anything Elphaba flicked her wrist and the chains fell to the floor. The Vinkuns moved aside, not wanting to be in her way.

"Time to leave Oz, old man, and take your fish woman with you!" The green woman shouted; energy crackled at her fingertips. There was an audible choking sound coming from the Wizard's fake persona.

"You let her in here?" He finally managed.

"You're the great and powerful Wizard, shouldn't be a problem, should it?" Fiyero spoke up. That statement made Glinda whirl around to look at him. The Vinkun troops barred the doorway and Morrible began to see what was happening. It was a setup and inwardly she knew that she was screwed.

"No more games!" Elphaba shouted; the energy she controlled flew from her hands and struck the large curtains, setting them ablaze. The Wizard ran out from behind them, which was the only escape from the flames.

"This ends now!" The green woman was determined and nothing would stand in her way.


	20. Chapter 20

Outside the Palace, the Vinkun troops stood, watching the Gale Force carefully. Zetti had done what he was told and then returned to the group. Duncan ordered the Palace gates closed and the Sergeant's orders were quickly followed.

"Now!" Zetti shouted once the gates were officially closed. The Vinkuns made a break for the Palace doors and began streaming into the building with Private Roth, Corporal Norris, and Corporal Bock leading the way. The Gale Force soldiers were confused and stood there, unsure of what to do. The Vinkuns were supposed to be their allies. Why would they need to head into the Palace?

Finally, a few got their wits about them and were about to fire their weapons toward the Palace when Sergeant Duncan yelled at them to stand down. They then looked to Zetti, the actual acting commander while Fiyero was inside the Palace. He repeated the order.

"This is for the good of Oz! You will not stand in the way of the Vinkun troops!" Zetti barked. Duncan scrambled over to the Lieutenant so that he would not be caught at the gates.

"The Wizard is in danger!" One of the men shouted.

"As will you be if you move one muscle!" Zetti shouted back. Suddenly the air was filled with the sounds of screeching.

"Flying Monkeys!" Another shouted. Outside the Palace walls, the crowd that had gathered ran for cover. Chistery came flying over the walls and landed next to the Sergeant and Lieutenant.

"They've gone inside but we may need help restraining the Gale Force in here," Zetti admitted. They were woefully outnumbered now that the Vinkuns had disappeared inside.

"Stand your ground. This will be the true test of how well Fiyero has been trying to clean up the Gale Force," Chistery said. Everyone seemed to be frozen and not willing to make a move until there was a loud explosion. The building shook and the sound of blocks falling and breaking could be heard. The next sound was a horn and that sent everyone running toward the backside of the Palace – Gale Force and invaders alike. There was a large hole in the back wall of the building and the structure was obviously compromised.

"Stand back!" Zetti barked, afraid that the wall would come down. The Flying Monkeys swooped into the hole and their screeching could be heard. Chistery shouted down,

"Coming out!" The Monkeys then swooped out of the hole, carrying Fiyero, Glinda, Elphaba, and the Wizard. They set them down on the other side of the rubble from the hole.

"Where's the fish woman?" Zetti asked.

"We don't need to be worrying about her anymore. She's dead," Chistery said.

"You're sure?" The Lieutenant gave him a look.

"A large block landed on her. It crushed her," the Flying Monkey was more specific. He then told them that the Vinkuns were exiting out of the front of the Palace and that there were more wounded up there. The Monkeys took to the skies again and entered the building, hoping to help the wounded.

"Set up a triage!" Zetti barked at his men. They scrambled around and Zetti went to Fiyero. He had cuts and scrapes and bruises. Not only that, but he was also holding his left wrist, which looked like it was broken.

"I'm fine. Go to Glinda," he told the Lieutenant, refusing assistance. Zetti didn't argue and quickly went to the blonde.

"Lady Glinda are you all right?" the Lieutenant asked. She only moaned in response. The Lieutenant carefully checked her over to find an abdominal wound. It didn't seem like there was a lot of bleeding which concerned him. Usually that meant the bleeding was all internal.

"I need help over here!" he bellowed and soldiers quickly came running. There was a shout from a few yards away that distracted them for a moment or two.

"You stabbed her!" Elphaba was not only on her feet, but she also had the Wizard by the throat. Her magic was doing all of the heavy lifting as she picked the portly, short man up off the ground with one hand; his feet were no longer touching the floor. It did not go unnoticed that Elphaba was not using dominate right hand but her left. Her right hand hung limply at her side.

"Please put him down. He must be alive to stand trial," Zetti said after he instructed his men to keep working on the blonde.

"He killed so many and now he's hurt Glinda. He doesn't deserve to live," Elphaba's anger wasn't misplaced and the Wizard was starting to turn blue.

"If you kill him, you'll become what he and Morrible tried to make you. You are better than that. Put him down. He won't hurt anyone anymore. Morrible is dead; she won't be able to hurt anyone either," the Lieutenant pleaded.

"Sir! Lady Glinda!" The soldiers could tell they were losing her. Zetti didn't have to say anything more. Elphaba dropped the blue Wizard and went to her friend. Sergeant Duncan pulled the Wizard back up as his color improved. Duncan hauled him away.

Despite having only one working arm, Elphaba cast a healing spell on her friend. She leaned close as Glinda tried to form some words before passing out. All Elphaba got was the word "father".

"She needs a comfortable place to rest," the green woman told them. The soldiers were frozen. Right in front of them, the woman who could have easily killed Lady Glinda, beloved figure of Oz, had indeed healed her. The blood on the blonde's clothing was drying and not re-wetting. Convinced things were ok, the soldiers quickly scooped up the blonde and took her way. Elphaba collapsed into a heap on a pile of rubble and Fiyero went to her.

"You need help," he said.

"So do you," she saw his now swelling left wrist.

"I can wait," Fiyero told her. Just then Royal Physician Talib came running around the corner of the building and quickly introduced himself.

"Is everyone all right? I didn't expect to blow a hole in the side of the building," Elphaba told them.

"The meeting room seems to be the one with the most damage. The Palace has been evacuated. Some of the soldiers have been injured but nothing too bad," Talib explained, not bothering to mention the dead Morrible in the ruins of the room.

"Well Fiyero has broken his wrist and I'm fairly certain my shoulder has come out of the socket," the green woman explained.

"All right, I want the building inspected for structural concerns. No one goes inside until we can determine it's safe. Tents should be set up in front of the Palace. All the wounded should get moved into the first one. The rest will be sleeping and eating quarters for those who have been displaced and our Vinkun guests. On the double men!" Zetti ordered. The men looked at Fiyero.

"You heard him," the Captain nodded. The men quickly dispersed.

"How long do you think the shock will last?" Zetti asked Fiyero as Doctor Talib looked over his two new patients.

"Brace yourself. Things won't take long to get weird, even with Dilek and his men," Fiyero said.


	21. Chapter 21

"What happened inside the Palace?" Sergeant Zeki asked. He was the last remaining officer that had not been committing treason. He had been called in order to start an investigation of the incident that afternoon. Now that darkness had set in, the medical staff had helped all the wounded, and everyone was uneasily settled in, he had to do his best to remain impartial.

"After the Vinkuns secured the door, I released myself from my restraints and told the Wizard that his reign was over," Elphaba answered truthfully. She and the soldier were in a private tent, meant strictly for the interrogations. Two mostly uncomfortable chairs around a table so the Sergeant could look the person he was speaking to in the eye.

"I bet he was surprised," Zeki smirked.

"There was a moment or two that I thought he might have a heart attack," Elphaba nodded.

"So then what?" The Sergeant wanted to know.

"Glinda tried to get in the way. She didn't want anyone to get hurt. While I've always thought that she could lead Oz, sometimes I think she doesn't realize that some things cannot be avoided," again more truth.

"Well her fiancé was standing near you. Perhaps she was afraid for his safety?" Zeki postulated. Elphaba heaved a sigh and the Sergeant wondered if that was because she was tired of people assuming she was violent or if there was something else going on.

"Had I wanted to harm the Captain I would not have waited until I was inside the Emerald Palace to do so. As it was, what was about to happen was dangerous enough," she said.

"You did heal his broken wrist and saved Lady Glinda from a wound that was definitely fatal," Zeki nodded. Elphaba just nodded in reply so he continued,

"After Glinda tried to get in the way, what happened?"

"The Wizard tried to back away and Morrible tried to harm myself and the Vinkuns. I defended them, knocking her on her ass," Elphaba told him. Zeki just wrote that down, waiting for her to elaborate.

"Morrible knew that she could not beat me, not in a fair fight. I think she must have assumed that Glinda was on my side. The next thing I knew, she was shouting at the Wizard and that's when I saw the dagger," Elphaba said. Sergeant Zeki stood from his seat and picked up the dagger from under the chair he was sitting on. He placed it on the table. It was not an ornate blade but it did not need to be to inflict the wound in Glinda's abdomen.

"That's it. He stabbed Glinda with it. At that moment, Morrible tried to blast me, thinking I was distracted. It would seem my rage got the best of me and the next thing I knew, Chistery was at my side," Elphaba admitted.

"Chistery is the leader of the Flying Monkeys, correct?" Zeki asked.

"Yes and my best friend," she nodded.

"They have been surprisingly well behaved given the stories I've heard," he said.

"What you heard was a collection of lies and venom. As I stated before, Morrible knew she couldn't beat me in a fair fight. In order to make people fall in line, they had to fear me and the Monkeys, just like Morrible feared me and the Monkeys. You've seen what I can do, if I was as vile as Morrible made everyone believe, would I sit here and let you question me? Would I have saved Glinda? Or helped Fiyero?" Elphaba wanted to know.

"Legitimate questions. That does not mean people would not fear you. You are, as you pointed out, more powerful than Morrible. She was feared," Zeki said. Doctor Talib had indeed confirmed the fish woman's death. They had created a funeral pyre and burned all the body parts that were lying around. What was left of the former Grand Vizier was stuck underneath a very heavy piece of the Palace and would be dealt with later.

"She used that fear and tore the citizens apart. Animals are not the enemy, she and the Wizard are," the green woman told him. The Sergeant nodded before calling for the soldiers outside the tent.

"Please escort Miss Elphaba to her quarters," he told them as they moved inside the tent. The green woman stood and she could see that the Gale Force soldiers were nervous.

"At ease, gentlemen. I have no ill will toward you; you are only doing your job," she said.

"Why do the Vinkuns not fear you?" The Private sputtered.

"I don't know that they don't. Have you ever known a Vinkun to show fear?" Elphaba asked.

"The Captain fears nothing," the Corporal next to him said.

"Exactly. They have been taught to serve their King and Queen well. Fiyero will help you become the same. I know it," she smiled slightly at them and walked out of the tent. The Corporal followed her out but the Private stood rooted in his spot.

"I need the next person to question," the Sergeant said.

"She's not like they say, is she?" The Private asked.

"I'm beginning to think that we've all been led astray," Zeki nodded.


	22. Chapter 22

A few hours later, Glinda slowly woke up to find herself no longer in the Palace and on a cot, in a dimly lit tent. It was now dark outside and she wondered what time it was. As she attempted to sit up, she found that was a bad idea as the room began to spin. Glinda tried to steady herself but all she could manage was to take deep breaths in and out. Luckily, that's when Doctor Talib rushed over to her. He'd been seated at a small desk that was a few feet away from the bed.

"Be careful Lady Glinda. Your wound is healed but you did lose quite a bit of blood, which I'm guessing is causing you to be lightheaded," he said, helping the blonde lie back down.

"Yes on the dizzy portion of the program. Healed?" Glinda asked, looking down at her abdomen but only seeing the blanket that the doctor had covered her with.

"Yes. The Wicked Witch saved your life. Though I have to admit, if the stories are true, I don't know why she did that," the Doctor confessed.

"She did that because our so-called "Wonderful Wizard" tried to kill me," the blonde said.

"She did say that," Talib nodded.

"Did everyone make it out?" Glinda wanted to know.

"Madame Morrible was killed. Everyone else made it out. Most with minor injuries. The Palace is not in as good a shape as it used to be. The structure is being tested," he filled her in.

"I need an update from the Captain," she told him.

"No can do. Sergeant Zeki is in charge until everything can be sorted," Talib said.

"Well let him know that I need to speak with him. What happened to the Wizard?" Glinda wanted to know.

"I honestly don't know. I imagine that if the Vinkuns don't return home soon that we'll have a much larger problem," the Doctor figured.

"Yes. I imagine so. An even larger problem if anything happens to Fiyero," she said. The Doctor nodded and quickly checked her vitals.

"You seem like you're well on the mend. I suspect the lightheadedness will go away after some more rest," Talib smiled at her.

"I feel like I could eat," the blonde admitted, which was odd given her dizziness but one could never know how the magic would affect the patient.

"Excellent. I'll have the soldiers bring you something," with that the Doctor walked away leaving Glinda to think by herself for a moment or two. She wasn't seeing a way out of this for anyone other than herself. That wasn't good.

"Lady Glinda, you're awake," Sergeant Zeki entered the tent.

"I am and I'd like an update," she didn't bother to mince words or attempt to sit up again. The Sergeant took a seat in the chair that was next to the bed so the blonde didn't have to look up at him.

"Well, I have conducted interviews with all those that were in the room, other than you. The Vinkuns have expressed their displeasure with being held. Truth be told, I suspect that they could wipe us all off the planet if they wished. The only thing that is stopping them is the fact that they have no direct orders to move. If the Captain so wished…" Zeki trailed off.

"Fiyero would never. His fight is with the Wizard. Where is the bastard?" Glinda wanted to know.

"The Wizard is under arrest. I have multiple witnesses stating he stabbed you and if you can confirm it, then there will be enough to bring to the Council," Zeki explained.

"Those idiots couldn't find their way out of a paper bag with two hands and a map," the blonde was blunt.

"I don't disagree but with Morrible dead and the Wizard under arrest, they are the next in line to rule Oz," the Sergeant said.

"Do me a favor. Wait to go to the Council. Let me be actually on my feet before you do anything," Glinda told him.

"They want a report in the morning. Do you think you'll be steady enough by then? I really don't want to be in the crosshairs of the Council. They can make my life miserable," Zeki was just as blunt as the blonde had been earlier.

"I know. You are in the unenviable position of acting leader of the Gale Force but I'm actually confused why Lieutenant Bayram is not the one asking me questions," Glinda had been going to say something else but that thought occurred to her so she changed her tack.

"The Lieutenant told me he was too close to the situation. He did not want to be accused of possible treason by perhaps some Council Member who thought he was not impartial enough," the Sergeant admitted.

"The Lieutenant has become my right hand man," she nodded.

"He wants no questions at the end of my investigation. No room for conspiracy theories," Zeki told her.

"Bayram is a good man and it was the right thing to do. How have the other prisoners been?" Glinda asked.

"The Captain has been returned to the Vinkun troops. While maybe not the best idea, I figured it would pacify our visitors. As for the Witch, she's been completely compliant. I mean she probably could have wiped this entire area off the map but she has answered all of my questions, been polite, and has not objected to being detained. I'm pretty sure that the Flying Monkeys would have absconded with her if they thought they needed to," the Sergeant explained.

"So what are your thoughts on the Witch?" Glinda pressed. She was interested in picking this young officer's brain.

"I think that if the stories were true, you'd be dead, she'd have set fire to the Emerald City, and we'd all be trying to pick up the pieces. Her skin color may be off-putting but I think that's the easiest thing to notice. She seems much more complex than everyone has given her credit for," Zeki admitted.

"Good you hang onto that. Part of being impartial is seeing the entire picture. Have you spoken to the Flying Monkeys?" The blonde wondered.

"Their leader, Chistery, seems to be the only one who can talk. I was on my way to speak to him before I was told you were awake," the Sergeant said.

"Good. Speak to him. There is a side to this that most in our country have decided to overlook," Glinda smiled. He was going to ask what she meant when there was a ruckus outside and the sound of screeching and guns cocking could be heard.

"Get under the bed," Zeki ordered before charging out of the tent.


	23. Chapter 23

When Zeki exited the tent, he saw Chistery and a bunch of the Flying Monkeys standing in front of the tent that Elphaba was quartered in. She was standing behind them, trying to talk to them down but they seemed to be ignoring her. It could have been because six Gale Force soldiers had their rifles drawn, pointed out at them.

Before the Sergeant could yell at anyone to hold their fire, a shot rang out, dropping one of the six to the ground. He howled in pain, the bullet having passed from the gun and into his kneecaps.

"Anyone else have any bright ideas?" Captain Fiyero wanted to know. He'd been followed by the rest of the Vinkun troops, who quickly cocked their rifles. The cacophony made even the most seasoned Gale Force soldier cringe. The remaining five dropped their weapons and the Vinkuns withdrew their weapons.

"What the hell is going on out here?" Sergeant Zeki demanded.

"Chistery stopped them from hauling me out of my tent and executing me," Elphaba gave him a look. He could tell that her patience was wearing thin.

"Whose bright idea was that?" Zeki demanded, looking at the five men who were now being arrested, along with the man on the ground. None of them said anything.

"We are civilized! No one is to be executed unless deemed appropriate by the courts! You will be removed as members of the Gale Force, effective immediately! Charges will be disobeying a direct order and attempted murder," the Sergeant put his foot down and the six were hauled away. The cells in the bottom of the Palace could not be used so they would be locked in the stocks until space could be made available.

"I was afraid that something like this would happen but I had no idea they would be dumb enough to do so with the Vinkun troops and Flying Monkeys here," Sergeant Zeki came up to the green woman after Chistery indicated to his fellow Monkeys to back down.

"Hate can cloud ones judgement, as does fear," Elphaba told him. Fiyero walked over to the two, wanting to check on her and see just what Zeki was up to.

"Would you really have had your men open fire?" The Sergeant asked.

"I figured one bullet would be enough. My guess is that the guy I shot is your leader," the Vinkun told him.

"How can you tell?" Zeki gave him a look.

"Because that was Corporal Nim. He was on my list of men to toss out of the service," Fiyero admitted.

"Good to know," the Sergeant shook his head. Fiyero looked at Elphaba and she gave him a slight smile.

"When do you meet the Council?" She suddenly asked.

"In the morning, Lady Glinda has insisted to be present," Zeki explained.

"How is she?" Elphaba was concerned.

"Dizzy but alive thanks to you. She confirmed what I've been told. The Wizard stabbed her," the Sergeant probably shouldn't have told them that but given what had just happened and Elphaba's reaction, he was more convinced that while the woman was indeed a witch, she was certainly not wicked.

"I suppose it would be against the rules for me to check on her," Elphaba said.

"Yes. Doctor Talib is keeping an eye on her. He's a very capable man," the Sergeant said.

"I'm sure he is," the green woman seemed disappointed but made no other indications of doing anything.

"I think it's time we tried to get some sleep. The sun will be up before we know it," Fiyero said.

"I shall try to sleep with one eye open," Elphaba told him. Zeki looked at the two of them, knowing that the comment put him on edge. The green woman wasn't wrong to be concerned.

"You may sleep with both eyes closed. I will protect you Miss Elphaba," it was Chistery. He hadn't been far away, keeping an eye on things. Elphaba smiled and the two headed into the tent leaving the two soldiers outside.

"There is a lot riding on that Council meeting tomorrow," Fiyero said.

"I know. I'm hoping they'll be more inclined to listen to Lady Glinda. My rank doesn't hold much weight," Zeki told him.

"Wrong, you're acting Captain. That should be enough. Though do keep an eye on Glinda for me. I don't want her over exerting herself. I know how the Council gets under her skin and I know that despite whatever face she puts on, she won't be one hundred percent by the morning," Fiyero said. Zeki nodded and then the Captain walked back to his men. The Sergeant heaved a sigh. He had some work to do.


	24. Chapter 24

"Lady Glinda! We did not expect you. How are you?" Councilman Barat asked as the blonde was wheeled into the temporary Council headquarters in the smaller public court building. Barat was one of the good members of the Council and often tried to rein in his cohorts.

"Almost feeling like myself. Thank you, Councilman," Glinda smiled as Sergeant Zeki pushed her up to the table in a converted court room. There was a round table in front of the judge's platform, in the area commonly called the "well".

"Where is the Wizard?" Councilman Pepi wanted to know.

"Under arrest Councilman. He attempted to murder Lady Glinda," Zeki spoke up despite not being directly spoken to.

"I don't believe it," Councilman Fekri said.

"I have statements from all the other witnesses in the room, including Lady Glinda. The Wizard stabbed her in the abdomen with a dagger that he is known to have had. There could be no better proof of his treachery," Sergeant Zeki told him.

"May we see the statements?" Councilman Arif asked.

"Of course," the acting Captain nodded and handed over the leather folder that contained all of the handwritten statements.

"What of the Witch?" Pepi wanted to know.

"She has been entirely cooperative. She healed Lady Glinda and Captain Fiyero. She even offered to help the other wounded, but Doctor Talib promised her that he had things under control," Zeki told them.

"She must be given that I have heard there are Flying Monkeys about," Fekri said.

"They have been protecting her from the likes of our own Gale Force. Last night six men attempted to harm her. The Vinkun troops stepped up to help corral the traitors," the Sergeant said.

"Traitors?" Arif's eyebrows went up.

"They tried to murder her without trial when she's been nothing but helpful. I think we all know that if she was a truly as powerful as the Wizard and Madame Morrible said, then she would have used her powers to leave the premises, damaging as many people as she could on her way out," Zeki pointed out.

"Surely that hole in the Palace was enough damage, especially since Madame Morrible is now dead," Pepi gave him a look.

"Madame Morrible is the reason this has all happened. She is the one who ordered the Wizard to stab me. He could have ignored her, he did not. It proves he is just as vile as Morrible was," Glinda spoke up.

"Perhaps your perspective isn't so clear. You were stabbed by someone you thought you could trust. Your fiancé seems to have come back with Vinkun troops who will do anything for him, including treason," Fekri said.

"My perspective is perfectly clear. Morrible sent a storm out to kill my fiancé. Then she was surprised that his parents sent troops to recover him. Then they did something that the Gale Force had been unable to do – capture the Witch. Seems we needed the assistance," Glinda shot back.

"Isn't that a failing of the Captain?" Pepi asked.

"Hardly. The previous Captain was not a man of military mind. Captain Fiyero has had to weed out the bad apples, attempt to retrain the men, and then try and capture the Witch. He's had his hands full," Zeki spoke up.

"I feel we are missing the point. The Wizard stabbed Lady Glinda at the orders of Madame Morrible. She should have been the one taking orders, not the other way around. We've been lied to and I'm not sure which side is the one doing the lying," Arif admitted.

"I think what you need to do is look at the evidence. Here is what we know – the Wizard stabbed Lady Glinda. The supposed "Wicked Witch" healed Lady Glinda. She did not have to step forward and offer her assistance. She could have let Lady Glinda die – after all isn't that supposedly what she wanted? If the Wicked Witch wanted to attack the Emerald City, she didn't need to wait. She has an army of Flying Monkeys. Instead, she willingly comes with the Vinkuns when they find her. She willingly has answered all of my questions. At any time, she could have escaped but even now she waits for your decision. Does that sound like someone who has down all that Madame Morrible has claimed?" Sergeant Zeki pounded his fist on the table.

"What my impassioned colleague is trying to say is that we've been lied to. All of us. The facts prove it. No one would willingly subject themselves to the inquisition and possible treason charges, for which, if found guilty, the penalty is death. I think we need to have Morrible and the Wizard's offices completely searched. We need to know the full truth before moving forward," Glinda said.

"I agree. There is no harm in fully investigating this. If things are as Lady Glinda says, then we dismantle all that is the Wizard. If there is no evidence, we proceed with charges for stabbing Lady Glinda. Either way, Oz is in need of a new leader," Councilman Barat spoke up. He'd been silently listening to everyone at the table.

"I second," Arif nodded. They all looked at Pepi and Fekri. Both men were frowning but they believed that was because Fekri was reading the statements.

"Do what you must. At a minimum, it is disturbing," Fekri had changed his mind but it was obvious that Pepi had not. Glinda nodded and turned to the Sergeant,

"Find men you trust and raid their offices after you've been given the all clear to reenter the Palace."


	25. Chapter 25

"Ma'am, you have a visitor," Private Schultz said from the doorway of the tent, later that day. He'd been asked to be put on Elphaba's detail after the incident with the other soldiers. He'd seen how she'd treated the Sergeant during his questioning of her and seen how she'd treated him and Corporal Bly. His fear had subsided and now he wished to make sure nothing happened to her until it could be dealt with by people above his paygrade.

"I do? Friend or foe?" Elphaba teased from her bed. She and Chistery had been trying to play chess after Doctor Talib had played a few rounds with her earlier in the day. The good Doctor thought she might enjoy something stimulating to do rather than staring at the tent walls.

"Hard to say ma'am," Schultz gave her a look.

"Well, you let them in, and I'll have Chistery decide," Elphaba winked at him. Schultz smiled and into the tent walked Fiyero.

"Yero, you could get in trouble for this. That is the last thing we need," Elphaba gave him a look.

"I needed to see you. Are you all right? I didn't really get to ask after everything that has happened," Fiyero told her.

"Well, it took every fiber of my being to not defend myself, but I knew that it would get construed as something it shouldn't," she admitted. Fiyero took her hands in his. He so wanted to hold her but knew that he couldn't. Glinda could not find out this way and he needed to be sure that no one thought he was under a spell or something.

"Ma'am, Captain, we have a bit of a situation out here," Schultz turned back inside the tent to warn them. Fiyero let go of her hands but the Private saw. He logged that away for later, not wanting to upset anyone, especially his superior officer.

"What's going on Private?" Fiyero went to the tent opening and Elphaba was right behind him.

"Trouble," Chistery pointed and there Fiyero could see that Lieutenant Zetti was being hauled away toward the temporary Council room by some other Gale Force soldiers.

"What are they doing?" Fiyero then saw Private Roth, Corporals Norris and Bock, and Sergeant Duncan right behind the Lieutenant. He let out a high-pitched whistle and immediately Lieutenant Dilek along with five other Vinkuns came over. They had traveled to escort Fiyero to Elphaba's tent. They did not want the Prince going anywhere by himself, even to the bathroom.

"Come on lads. Let's go find out what the hubbub is," Dilek ordered. They quickly went up and Fiyero followed them.

"What could they possibly want with those men?" Elphaba asked Schultz as they watched the exchange between the Vinkuns and the Gale Force.

"I honestly have no idea ma'am. They were brought back with you by the Vinkuns right?" the Private wondered.

"Correct. Chistery found them in the woods. If we had not saved them, they'd all have died from pneumonia," Elphaba said.

"The Captain trusts them. That should be enough," Schultz said.

"I wish it were that simple," she admitted.

"The Captain has done nothing wrong. How could anyone fault his mother and father for sending troops out to find him? I mean he was on a mission for the Wizard. Just following his orders like a good soldier does," the Private was obviously not privy to the greater workings of the world. Everything for him was still in black and white. The world operated quite differently in many shades of gray.

"Say a soldier is given an unjust order. Does he follow it because it is his orders, or does he defy it because he knows it is wrong?" Elphaba asked him as she watched Fiyero get upset at someone one of the soldiers said. Lieutenant Dilek pulled him back and then gave that particular solider a tongue lashing.

"Defying an order is a punishable offense. An unjust order is, well I've never really been asked to do anything unjust. Perhaps I am too far down the pecking order, ma'am," Schultz frowned.

"So, if a superior came up to you right this moment and told you to shoot me, would you do it?" she tried a different tack.

"No. You have not been tried by a jury of your peers, or even arrested, as far I can figure. Punishment for whatever crimes you may have committed is not under my purview," he answered truthfully.

"But you just said that not following orders was a punishable offense," Elphaba said. Schultz's eyes went wide.

"See. Life is not always so defined. It is the gray areas where even those who claim to be doing good can be doing evil while justifying it to everyone else. If you are willing to accept a justification, then you might be more willing to lean in directions that are not just. Directions that can take one down the wrong path without you even noticing. You saw what happened to those men the other day. One of them said, 'let's kill the Witch', and the others did not hesitate. Why? Because their Wizard and Grand Vizier told them I was evil. I had done terrible things to the people of Oz. Now I know we haven't known each other long but do you see what they see? Am I that horrible person? Are the Flying Monkeys terrible?" Elphaba asked him.

"I am so confused," the Private admitted. Chistery reached up and patted him on the upper arm. Schultz looked down and could see that the Flying Monkey had a slight smile on his face.

"That confusion leads to fear and fear is a great motivator. It makes normal people do and say things that they wouldn't normally do. That is what is the most fearful thing of all," she said. Just then Fiyero, along with the other Vinkuns game back over.

"What's going on?" Elphaba asked.

"Apparently, the Council wants to speak to them. One of those idiots tried to call me a Winkie bastard," Fiyero said.

"I'm surprised that the Lieutenant didn't punch him then," the green woman smirked.

"I was thinking about it, ma'am," Dilek admitted.

"I heard that Lady Glinda ordered a search of the Wizard's office and Morrible's too. Sergeant Zeki is taking men to sift through the files now that the Palace has been decided to be structurally sound enough. I heard they've been bracing the exterior near the hole to prevent anything from falling down," Schultz piped up.

"Well, I hope all goes well with them. Has anyone seen Lady Glinda?" Elphaba asked.

"Lieutenant Bayram is with her now. I think he wanted to be sure that she was ok. Lady Glinda is a high-class lady and I'm sure she is finding these tents most uncomfortable," the Private told them.

"Yes, I imagine she is," Elphaba smirked, knowing that the Private was right.

"Well, I think I'll make sure that the two of them are getting along," Fiyero said and with that he and the Vinkuns left. Elphaba heaved a sigh and headed back inside the tent, Chistery followed her. Schultz noted the sigh and his brain got to wondering again. He didn't have much time to wonder however when Private Cengel rushed over.

"We need to have you escort the Witch into the Palace. Sergeant Zeki has found something that he cannot translate. He thinks she might be able to help," Cengel said.

"This ought to be interesting," Elphaba said to Chistery, overhearing everything at the tent opening.


	26. Chapter 26

Elphaba had followed Private Schultz into the Palace. Chistery had gone with them, not wanting to leave the green woman's side. They were pointed in the direction they needed to go and were soon upon the room where Sergeant Zeki and some other men searched.

Morrible's office was huge. It had four large (almost floor to ceiling) windows in it, the heavy curtains meant to keep out the winter cold would have also allowed for complete darkness in the room. There was a private bathroom. To the right of the door, a large plush couch that sat up against the wall. Not far in front of the couch were two comfortable chairs facing the heavy Quoxwood desk. There was no way to sneak into her office if she was in it, as the desk had a direct line of sight to the door.

"Ah Miss Elphaba. Thank you for coming. We have found this book that is in some strange language that I do not recognize. Do you think you could assist?" The Sergeant asked from his spot, seated at the former Grand Vizier's desk.

"A magical language?" The green woman raised an eyebrow as she moved closer to him. He handed her a well-worn blue leather-bound book, which was not very big. It reminded Elphaba of a diary she'd kept as a child. She took a quick look over the exterior, noting the wear patterns in the leather.

"I assume so since Morrible had magical capabilities. I guess I just figured it would have been labelled 'Spell Book'," Zeki admitted. Elphaba smirked and leaned up against the desk.

"Most spell books are labeled with what they contain. You know spells on transformations or medical spells. This not having a label is a bit odd if it's a spell book," she explained. Flipping the book open, she looked at the printing. It was obviously handwritten, which was not entirely surprising. The printing press was a relatively new technology, and most books were still produced via handwriting. However, this did not look like a mass-produced book. No title was the first give away but none of the pages were numbered as Elphaba flipped through.

"Sergeant this is not a spell book," she said.

"What is it then?" He wondered.

"I honestly cannot be sure. As part of my learning at Shiz, we were taught to recognize ancient languages. Some spell books were very old, and they were written in the language of their peoples. While we were not necessarily taught to translate it, we were taught where to go for the expert in that particular language," Elphaba explained.

"That seems like a sound plan," Zeki nodded.

"Trying a spell in a language you are not familiar with can have terrible consequences. Better safe than sorry. The problem is, this does not appear to be any of the languages I've learned about," she admitted.

"Oh boy. That could have government secrets in it, and we have no way of knowing," he was concerned that evidence would be overlooked.

"Morrible was nothing if not thorough. Where did you find this book?" Elphaba wanted to know.

"It was in the filing cabinet. I thought it was odd," a Private spoke up.

"Show me," the green woman said. The Private looked at his Sergeant who nodded. With that approval, the Private went over to the corner of the room, where there was the wooden filing cabinet. He was about to open the drawer when she stopped him.

"Look at the way these drawers are numbered," she said.

"Yeah, they are strange. I found the book in the one numbered seven," the Private explained.

"What do you mean?" Private Schultz finally spoke up from his spot, still near the door.

"Well, the first one is number one but the second is five, the third is seven, and the fourth is eleven," Elphaba said.

"I would have said prime numbers, but one isn't a prime number," Schultz frowned.

"Very good Private. But why write those numbers on the drawers? I mean what is the point?" the green woman wondered.

"It does seem unnecessary and something that the average person wouldn't notice," Sergeant Zeki said. Elphaba pondered over the numbers and then opened the drawer marked 'seven'.

"There are more numbers inside the drawers," she said.

"Let me write them down," Zeki told her. He grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. Quickly he wrote down the numbers on the drawers. Elphaba went ahead and opened the other drawers.

"The first drawer has a two in it. The second one has thirteen. The third one has seventeen. The final one is nineteen," she read aloud.

"All prime numbers except one," Schultz commented. Elphaba was not sure where he'd received his teaching but the Private next to her had no idea what he was talking about.

"It does seem odd. Maybe they add up to something. It's too long to be a combination to a safe…" she trailed off.

"I need someone. There is only one person I know that can tell me if I'm right," the green woman suddenly spoke up.

"What do you mean?" Zeki was confused as he looked at the numbers on the paper.

"The book. It's not spells or an ancient language. It's a cipher. These numbers somehow help to translate the words," Elphaba said.

"Best way to hide something in plain sight but why would Morrible need the numbers written down inside the filing cabinet?" Schultz asked.

"The number would coincide to the code she used that day, perhaps? My guess is that each page could be a different cipher," she told them.

"Sweet Oz, that could take years to figure out," the Sergeant shook his head.

"Not necessarily. But I still need someone," Elphaba pressed.

"Who? I shall fetch them," Zeki said.

"The Tin Man," she told him. Chistery looked at her. Boq wasn't exactly happy to be a Tin Man and he'd disappeared not long after the incident.

"Who now?" Schultz was confused.

"Long story but I'll need to borrow a crystal ball and some troops to find him," Elphaba said. Zeki wondered what he should do. Elphaba was in the room where Morrible died and the Wizard tried to kill Glinda. She was also supposedly "the Wicked Witch". On the other hand, if Morrible hid this, it had to be important…

"All right. I'll see what I can do," the Sergeant said.


	27. Chapter 27

They had managed to find a crystal ball after asking Lady Glinda if she had one. The blonde had directed them to her office and her own filing cabinet. Sergeant Zeki then watched as Elphaba conjured up a spell to find the metal man. She located him rather quickly in the Great Gillikin Forest.

"What is he doing in the forest?" Zeki wondered.

"I honestly have no idea. What is in the Great Gillikin Forest, other than what one would expect?" Elphaba asked.

"Nothing overly exciting," the Sergeant shrugged.

"Well, we must go there. Perhaps the Tin Man can explain when we get there," the green woman said.

"I cannot let you go. Lieutenant Bayram and a few men will go and bring him back here," Zeki explained.

"Very well, I understand. Perhaps it would be best to not mention me until he gets here," Elphaba said. That made the Sergeant wonder why she was saying that. Most would have run for the hills anyway if they were being requested by the Gale Force and the Wicked Witch. Zeki would tell the Lieutenant to be careful with how he requested the Tin Man's presence.

The trip was not a short one and it would be two days before Bayram and his men arrived back at the Emerald Palace around noon. While they were gone, a letter had been received from the King and Queen of the Vinkus. They wanted their troops and their son freed from the Emerald City immediately or they threatened to bring to bear the entirety of the Vinkus upon the city. Fiyero had quickly tried to quell his parents' anger with a letter. Lady Glinda quickly wrote them a letter as well and that went in with Fiyero's letter, telling them that soon all would be revealed and that if they so wished, they could come to the Palace with their entourage.

Now, as the men unloaded the covered wagon they had taken, a crowd gathered. The soldiers eventually removed the cover. It was easy to see that the Tin Man was frozen in place, hunched over. His joints had rusted out in the weather of the Great Gillikin Forest. What hadn't rusted were his eyes. He moved them all about and definitely seemed to know that Elphaba was there, despite his head being pointed toward the ground.

"Tin Man do not be afraid. I do not want to hurt you. I need your help," Elphaba said. He could not answer because his jaw had rusted shut.

"Who is he? How'd he get this way?" Glinda wanted to know.

"It is a long story but one that must be told after we get him working again," the green woman said.

"Oil is what is best in this case," Aziz, the stable boy, came over to them with an oil can. Elphaba smiled at him and took the can and climbed up onto the wagon. She could see fear mixed with anger in the Tin Man's eyes and bent over to whisper in his ear,

"Boq, I am not going to hurt you. This is our chance to rid Oz of the evil that has invaded it. Help me and I will help you. I promise. I will find a way to fix this." She did not wait for a response and gently, carefully, went about oiling his joints. Boq marveled at her movements – lightly touching and checking every joint to make sure that there was oil on each one.

"How does that feel? Can you move?" Elphaba wanted to know. She expected him to lash out. She expected him to be understandably be mad.

"Better, much better. Thank you," he said.

"I am glad they found you when they did. How long were you stuck like that?" The green woman asked.

"That freak storm that rolled into Gillikin. I didn't have time to make for cover," he admitted.

"We are sorry to hear of your troubles Tin Man, but we are in need of your assistance," Glinda spoke up from her spot on the ground. Boq looked around and saw Fiyero down there. He also noticed the intent look he was getting. The Prince looked determined and the fact that his hand kept playing with the ring of metal around the trigger of his rifle, told Boq that he was on edge.

"Lady Glinda, it is an honor, ma'am. I will be more than willing to help," he said.

"Excellent. Miss Elphaba found a book that would appear to be a cipher left by the dearly departed Morrible," the blonde told him.

"A cipher?" He looked at the green woman without thinking.

"How do you know Miss Elphaba?" Glinda was surprised.

"I am Boq, son of Bfee, of Munchkinland," he said it without wavering.

"Boq? What happened?" the blonde couldn't believe it.

"As Miss Elphaba said, it is a long story. First, I will help with the book," he promised. Elphaba climbed down off the wagon and then extended her hand to the man made of metal. He took it and carefully descended out of the wagon. The green woman started toward the Palace and Boq met her pace.

"Do not think that we are now even," he told her in a low tone.

"Hardly Boq. I owe you your freedom. I am sorry for what Nessa had started. I am sorry that you ended up this way. I only did what I could do at the moment. I'll never be able to give you back the time you lost but you're alive and Nessa is not," Elphaba said in an equally low tone.

"I heard about what happened. I…" he started.

"Don't apologize. No matter what she had done, Morrible used her and used Glinda as pawns. She killed Nessa and made it look like Glinda had a hand in it. Everything that has happened is my fault. If I had fallen in line like Morrible wanted, Nessa would still be alive, and you would not look like you do," the green woman said as she started to climb the stairs. Boq froze. He didn't expect Elphaba to say something like that. He was angry at his condition and had every right to be but there were a multitude of emotions that Elphaba had been keeping down. He followed her as quickly as he could with Sergeant Zeki and Chistery on their heels.


	28. Chapter 28

Fiyero had insisted on being there to watch the Tin Man. Sergeant Zeki wasn't sure he should let him be there but given how insistent the Vinkun had been, he decided to let him. However, the former Captain was told to sit in a chair in the corner of the room, not near the book that needed to be deciphered. Fiyero had refused to leave his rifle behind and that made Zeki even more curious.

"So, you found the numbers on the drawers and in the drawers. She must have been using them to tell her which key to use but without a reference to what book she's using as a key…" Boq frowned.

"Why would she use different codes on different pages of the book?" Elphaba wondered as the Tin Man looked through the book. Chistery hung nearby, not wanting to interfere but also wanting to stay near the green woman.

"That does seem odd. Perhaps more important information is located on the pages that differ," he suggested.

"So, what do the numbers correspond to?" Glinda wanted to know.

"They could mean correspond to the letters of the alphabet. Typically, "a" is one, "b" is two, and so on. Perhaps the number is now swapped. For instance, "a" could now be five, "b" would then be six, and so on," Boq said.

"Which would explain why there are numbers larger than twenty-six in the book," Elphaba said.

"Yes, but typically, unless you're really careful, you don't want to use too many double-digit numbers. While it could send someone trying to deciphering it in the wrong direction, you could read it wrong if you're being sloppy with your handwriting," the Tin Man frowned.

"Well, it would seem that Morrible was neat with her handwriting," the green woman said.

"Ok. We're going to need some equipment and then we can get started," Boq seemed confident.

"What kind of equipment?" Sergeant Zeki wanted to know.

"Chalk board, chalk, eraser, pens, and paper," Boq told him.

"I can dig those things up," the Sergeant went out into the hall and quickly asked the two guards to find what the Tin Man had been asking for.

"Something is bothering me…" Elphaba said as the Sergeant came back into the room.

"What is that?" Glinda asked.

"How would she find the time to do all of this? I mean Morrible was basically running the country. The Wizard was only a figurehead. Morrible would attend Council meetings. She'd speak to the crowds. The only time people "saw" the Wizard was behind that hokey smokescreen. Yet somehow with all those engagements, she found the time to write in code. Not just one code, multiple codes," the green woman frowned.

"She probably just used a spell to write the code in the book," Fiyero said. It was the first words he'd spoken in a while.

"If there had been a spell to do homework, we'd have found it," Glinda chuckled, referring to their time at Shiz.

"We?" Sergeant Zeki asked.

"Yes. Fiyero, Boq, and I went to Shiz," Glinda wasn't sure she should reveal how she knew Elphaba. She did not know that the Sergeant already knew Elphaba went to Shiz as well.

"At the same time as Miss Elphaba?" Zeki asked.

"Yes, the same time Sergeant," Elphaba said without looking up from the book. Boq didn't know what to say and was sure they'd be in trouble.

"That explains why the Captain is so protective of you," he looked at her.

"It's something he can't help," she looked up at him and gave him a slight smile. There was a knock on the door and in came the guards with what Boq needed to figure out the code. They then headed back out of the room.

"Well, we better get started," he said.

"I agree. Fiyero has a good point about a spell. I'll try and see if she has any spells in her books about using a spell to decipher code," Elphaba said.

"Why don't I do that while you help Boq? You know how I am with puzzles," Glinda spoke up.

"Good point. Ok Boq, lay it on me," the green woman smirked. Fiyero watched them and Sergeant Zeki came over to him. Speaking in a low tone,

"So, you knew that Miss Elphaba wasn't what the Wizard and Morrible said."

"Of course. As much as I wanted to, I couldn't help her by speaking up. I needed to stay where I was and work from the inside," Fiyero admitted in an equally low tone.

"And she asked you to do this?" Zeki wondered.

"No. I did it because I knew she couldn't do it on her own. Would you have believed her if she walked up to you and said she wasn't what the Wizard and Morrible said she was?" Fiyero asked.

"Good point. Is she lulling us into a false sense of security?" Zeki gave him a look.

"What would be the point? She isn't trying to clear her name for power. She isn't trying to clear her name for herself. You know why Morrible and the Wizard were afraid of her? Because she is more powerful than they were. Not just magically but also her idealism. Elphaba believes in change. Equal rights for all, human and Animal. Morrible and the Wizard fed on fear. If there is no fear, they have no power," Fiyero told him.

"So, what better way than to squash their enemy by turning them into public enemy number one?" The Sergeant was beginning to understand more and more how this whole thing started. There were still missing pieces, but he wasn't about to push. He needed their help with Morrible's book.

"Kill her and she becomes a martyr. Destroy her image and her words no longer hold any power. The lies become the truth and the person who kills her becomes a national hero," the Vinkun said. Sergeant Zeki frowned.

"Then why did Morrible not try to kill Elphaba when she had the chance? Sergeant Mohir's shooting of her would have made him the national hero," he asked.

"That, I do not know. I'm not even sure Elphaba knows. It could be in that book," Fiyero said.

"Perhaps I will help them translate then," the Sergeant told him.


	29. Chapter 29

Elphaba had fallen asleep on the couch while Chistery had sat down on the floor and leaned up against the couch, where he too had fallen asleep. Glinda was sleeping in one of the comfy chairs and Fiyero had taken up the other chair. Sergeant Zeki had passed out in Morrible's office chair.

Boq, meanwhile, continued to toil on the coded book. Glinda had been unsuccessful in finding a spell that would assist him in the deciphering process. Painstakingly, for each page, the key had to be determined and then the words had to be translated. Yet on every page there were numbers that remained, not fitting into the pattern. They made no sense and Boq wondered if they had missed something.

The hours continued to pass as he slowly moved ahead with his task. He was using candlelight and oil lamps to keep the room from complete darkness. Still, it isn't much light and doesn't seem to be bothering his sleeping cohorts.

There was a knock on the door sometime later and Private Schultz entered the room. He saw everyone sleeping except for the Tin Man. Cocking half a smile, he headed over to Elphaba and gently shook her shoulder. Suddenly, he found his wrist enclosed in a death grip.

"Miss Elphaba, its Private Schultz," he kept his tone low so as to not disturb the others. Needless to say, the Private was very surprised by the strength of Elphaba's grip. She didn't let go though so he tried it again.

"Miss Elphaba, its Private Schultz. Ma'am, are you ok?" The young man grew concerned when her grip didn't loosen despite his trying to be gentle. That's when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned his head and saw the Captain. While the Private had tried to be quiet, the old habits of his Vinkun training meant that Fiyero didn't sleep very heavily. In fact, he only slept heavily after a long night of drinking back at Shiz or when Elphaba was by his side. Granted he hadn't had too many times for the latter, but he knew that the experience was different. She was different from all the other girls.

_Let me_ , he mouthed and the Private nodded. Fiyero leaned down near Elphaba's ear so that only she could hear him. He whispered something and the green woman's grip released the Private.

"Yero?" She was confused.

"The Private needs your assistance," he smiled.

"Oh. Sorry," she said, carefully sitting up. By now, Chistery was awake.

"I didn't mean to wake you, but the Council wants to speak to Miss Elphaba in an hour," Schultz was apologetic.

"Now?" The green woman was surprised. That's when she realized that Boq had been working all night by himself.

"Oh Boq, I'm so sorry," she said pushing past the men and the Flying Monkey.

"Don't apologize. I don't need sleep anymore," he half-smiled.

"What have you found?" Elphaba asked.

"We do have some answers, but we also have more questions needing answers. There are sentences that start to make sense and then there are random numbers that make no sense," he heaved a sigh.

"The Council intends to grill me. I'm not sure what they will ask or if I'll be free to come back here," she admitted. Boq let the words sink in. Elphaba was fighting for her very existence and if he were ever to be a human again, her fight had to be his fight.

"Then I should go with you. We can show them what we have found so far," he said.

"Anything that would buy us more time to decipher?" She wondered.

"Oh, I have something that should be quite interesting," Boq smirked.

"Then join me. We will go to the Council together," Elphaba said.

"Me?" The Tin Man was confused.

"You hate me. They'll believe what you say. Besides, you're the one who found it. Doesn't matter what I say. They'll probably only see it as self-serving testimony," she told him.

"Elphaba…" Fiyero started.

"This is the only option. Should any of this go awry, I will deal with the consequences. I only ask that you continue what I've started, if you can. At a minimum, take care of Chistery and the others. They do not deserve anything more to happen to them," with that, Elphaba headed out into the hallway. Private Schultz looked at the Captain.

"I'll take care of her sir," he promised before scooting out into the hallway. Boq started heading for the door with his books of translations but Fiyero stopped him. The former Munchkin could see the look in his eyes. Swallowing hard, Boq headed out of the door.


	30. Chapter 30

"Miss Elphaba, we did not realize that you were bringing someone with you," Councilman Barat spoke up upon the green woman entering the temporary Council headquarters with Boq and Private Schultz.

"May I introduce Boq, son of Bfee, of Munchkinland," Elphaba smiled slightly. She took a seat across the table, opposite of the members of the Council. Boq tried to sit as well but it wasn't as easy for him and Elphaba quickly hopped up to help him get into the chair next to her. The translations he'd managed to complete were placed on the table.

"Welcome Master Boq," Councilman Arif nodded at him.

"Thank you, Councilman," Boq bowed.

"What causes you to grace us with your presence?" Fekri asked.

"A diary of sorts was found inside Madame Morrible's office and Miss Elphaba knew of my penchant for solving ciphers," the Tin Man explained.

"Ciphers?" Pepi raised an eyebrow.

"The book uses a combination of numbers that were found on and in the file cabinet inside her office. Those numbers represent letters. Each page was written in a different cipher in an attempt to confuse the average citizen who found the book. Without the numbers that were found on and in the filing cabinet, it just looks like a jumble of numbers. I recognized it and immediately thought of Master Boq," Elphaba spoke up.

"How do you know Master Boq?" Barat wanted to know.

"We grew up in Munchkinland together and went to Shiz University," the green woman was completely honest.

"You went to Shiz?" Fekri was surprised.

"I was allowed to go to Shiz to assist my sister and while I was there, I was allowed to obtain an education," more honesty from the only woman in the room.

"Before we get any further, I must ask. What is your lineage? You say you were raised in Munchkinland but forgive me, you do not look like a Munchkin and neither does Master Boq," Arif asked. Elphaba knew this was coming. She thought she'd prepared herself, but she supposed there was nothing she could really do to prepare.

"Master Boq's current condition is due to my sister. She attempted something she should not have, and this was the best I could do in order to save his life. My attempt however has left him in a terrible state for which I have yet to find a cure. I fully intend to fix him and give him back everything that he has lost," Elphaba dodged the original question.

"Is this true Master Boq?" Pepi asked.

"It is," the Tin Man nodded.

"Miss Elphaba, why are you so reluctant to talk about yourself?" Barat pressed. The green woman heaved a sigh before answering,

"I am third Thropp Descending, heiress to the title of Eminent Thropp," there it was. There was no going back now.

"I'm guessing you left that part out earlier given the Munchkins' reaction to your sister's death?" Arif wondered.

"Indeed sir. It is better that the Munchkins do not know who I really am. The rest of my family is gone, and my guess is that the bulk of the Munchkin population like it that way," Elphaba said.

"We will leave that part stricken from the record. No one wishes to start an uproar over who is really in charge in Munchkinland. They are unstable enough as it is," Fekri told them.

"I appreciate it. I have no wish to rule over anyone, but I especially hold no love for Munchkins given my childhood," the green woman said.

"Moving on, what have you found in Morrible's book?" Pepi asked.

"What I have found so far is disturbing. Given Miss Elphaba's talents, Morrible had big plans for her originally. It does not discuss why the plans shifted to where we are today but Morrible was finding ways to get what she wanted," the Tin Man explained.

"How so?" Barat wanted to know.

"She was looking for a specific spell book, which only Elphaba could actually read. Once she had it, she intended to capture Elphaba, and then force her to give over her magical powers. Of course, once this was complete, Elphaba would then be murdered in the name of the state, and no one would be able to take on the Grand Vizier," Boq handed over the pages he had with these translations.

"How would she get Miss Elphaba to turn over her powers?" Arif had never heard of that.

"It is an ancient spell. A person could borrow another's powers to multiply their own. It was meant as a last resort. You see once the person "borrows" someone else's powers, there was no guarantee they could be transferred back. Quite often, it is used as a last resort because the person needing the extra power was heading to their death. You see all that power could overload the person's body when fighting another powerful magical being," Elphaba explained.

"But if the original person is dead…" Fekri trails off.

"Then it gives time to the person with the added powers to learn how to control their new found magic," the green woman nodded.

"It gets worse I'm afraid," Boq spoke up.

"I'm not sure how much worse it could actually get Boq," she was confused by his comment and gave him a look.

"Morrible writes in her diary about suspicions she had regarding the Wizard," the Tin Man wasn't sure he should be doing this in front of the Council, but he knew it would get out once he turned the deciphered books over. Elphaba remained silent, thoroughly not understanding what he was getting at. Boq grabbed the stack of pages and quickly flipped to the one he was looking for.

"He has something he calls his "Miracle Elixir". It is a green liquid inside a green glass bottle with a stopper in it. When he drinks it, it loosens him up, his lips, in particular. I warned him about drinking it around others, but he told me that it was best when drunk with others," Boq stopped when he felt Elphaba's hand on his arm. He looked at her confused; he hadn't gotten to the bad part yet. The move was not missed by the Councilmen.

"He said the miracle was that it lowered inhibitions and makes the person more pliable. He has offered me a taste, but I have never taken it, afraid of what his other worldly concoction may contain. I have no doubt that he used it on other women to get what he wanted out of them. After he starts drinking the liquid, he often speaks of a woman whom he would never forget. She was tall and had red hair and he called her "his rose". He spoke of her like a long-lost love and has never spoke of anyone else in that way. I haven't found out who she was but given his penchant of taking what he wants, I have to wonder if this woman would look at him in the same light," Boq swallowed hard before looking at Elphaba. Her green had changed shade and she looked like she was about to be ill. Private Schultz stepped in and quietly asked her if she was all right. Elphaba only managed a slight shake of her head – 'no'.

"What is it Miss Elphaba?" Councilman Barat grew concerned give her reaction. Private Schultz went to the door and quickly asked the guard for a doctor to be called. It was a good thing too as Elphaba passed out.


	31. Chapter 31

"Miss Elphaba, how are you feeling?" Doctor Talib asked as the green woman woke up. She'd been out for just a few minutes, Councilmen Barat and Arif had lifted her from the floor to the top of the table, both noticing how thin she was. Private Schultz had broken the land speed record in order to find Fiyero and Glinda and bring them back to the Council's temporary home.

"I'm not sure," she admitted, then she felt Fiyero's hand in hers.

"Maybe you need something to eat," he said, knowing she hadn't eaten breakfast.

"I think what I found in Morrible's book did it," Boq spoke up. He looked remorseful still unsure of what he'd uncovered other than the fact that the Wizard had an implied history of sexual assault. That was bad and on top of everything else he knew about the Wizard; it only made things worse.

"What did you find?" Glinda wanted to know.

"Morrible believes that the Wizard had a penchant for getting women in vulnerable positions and taking advantage," Councilman Fekri said.

"That green liquid, right?" The blonde asked.

"How did you…" Councilman Barat started.

"Because he tried it on me. I refused and he didn't push but I was certainly creeped out," Glinda involuntarily shivered.

"It's worse Glin," Elphaba spoke up as Doctor Talib and Fiyero helped her off the table and into a chair.

"I know. I honestly had no idea how to tell you," the blonde confessed.

"You know?" The green woman looked hurt.

"I didn't find out until Fiyero was missing in the woods. The Wizard had this green bottle and I almost lost it right there," Glinda went to her friend and pulled her into a hug.

"What are we missing?" Councilman Arif was as confused as the rest of the room.

"I have one of those bottles. It is the last thing I have from my mother," Elphaba explained as Glinda sat down next to her.

"Fae…" Fiyero wasn't sure she wanted to open up like this in front of the Council.

"No, Yero it all makes sense now. No wonder my father… Frex… hated me. He knew I wasn't his," Elphaba half smiled at him.

"There is nowhere else that these bottles can be procured? Perhaps it's a common bottle and the liquid is the special portion? I mean there are lots of green bottles in Oz," Councilman Fekri said.

"I saw the exact same bottle Elphie once showed me back at Shiz, in the Wizard's hands. He was drinking from it. Why get that particular bottle when any old bottle would do?" Glinda pointed out.

"My mother was tall with red hair. She was known as the Rose of Nest Hardings," Elphaba's words came out strained. It was a lot to absorb.

"I think it best that Miss Elphaba take a break. She needs time to process this. In fact, we all need time to process this. Master Boq, how much of the book do you have translated?" Councilman Barat wanted to know.

"About half. I need more time to finish the rest," Boq told the room.

"Ok get working on that. We'll reconvene tomorrow afternoon; if you think that will be enough time," Barat said.

"I don't need to sleep or eat. It'll be enough time," Boq smiled slightly.

"Very good," the Councilman nodded. The Tin Man stood up from his seat and looked at Elphaba. He had no idea what to say so he just left.

"Fiyero, would you please escort Miss Elphaba to the mess tent? She needs something to eat and I think a checkup is in order," Doctor Talib said. Fiyero nodded and quickly went to the green woman's side. She smiled at him but did not let him help her out of her seat. In a show of strength, she lifted herself up, bowed to the Councilmen, and headed out of the room. Fiyero quickly followed her and Private Schultz brought up the rear.

"Gentlemen," Glinda closed the door before the four men could leave.

"Lady Glinda?" Councilman Pepi spoke up for the first time in a long time.

"There is something more you must know before we move forward," she said.

"If it is about Elphaba's heritage, we know that she is the third Thropp Descending. On top of apparently being the daughter of the Wizard," Councilman Arif said.

"She told you?" Glinda was surprised.

"Rather reluctantly but yes. Of course, given how the Munchkins reacted to her sister's death, I can't say I blame her for keeping that secret," Councilman Fekri shook his head.

"Do you think Morrible knew Miss Elphaba was the Wizard's child?" Councilman Barat asked.

"I don't even think the Wizard knows. When Morrible brought us to meet him, he did not act as if he knew Elphaba was his daughter and Elphaba didn't know until fifteen minutes ago," the blonde said.

"Why did you two come to see the Wizard?" Fekri asked.

"We were Morrible's two best students and she said it would be an honor to meet him. He wanted to see if we would work for him. We thought it was a big honor, but it turned out that all Morrible and the Wizard wanted was to see what Elphaba could do. When he suggested that she use her powers to help him and she did, he then revealed what she had just done would help to squash the Animal population. Knowing that it was wrong, Elphaba defied him and left the Palace. From that moment forward, Morrible peddled her as the 'Wicked Witch', turning all of Oz against her," Glinda explained, leaving the Grimmerie out of it. She had no idea where the book was but wherever it was, it was better it wasn't here.

"What did she do to show her power?" Pepi wanted to know.

"The Wizard had her create Chistery and the Flying Monkeys," the blonde was honest.

"Good Unnamed God," Barat shook his head.

"What did Miss Elphaba mean that Frex hated her?" Arif questioned.

"I can only speculate but basically Frex treated Elphaba like a servant. When she first arrived at Shiz, she was only supposed to make sure Nessa got back and forth to class and make sure everything Nessa needed, she got. It wasn't until Morrible suggested that Elphaba get an education, that Frex was willing to allow it. Well, more to the point, Morrible offered to have Elphaba attend for free, so that Morrible could self-tutor her. Frex was fine with it since it was free. When it came time to go home for break, Frex sent a carriage for Nessa and not for Elphaba. She was forced to stay on campus during the holidays. I suspect there was more going on, but I never pressed, and she never offered," Glinda heaved a sigh.

"Thank you, Lady Glinda. We will reconvene once Master Boq is done with his translations," Barat smiled slightly. The blonde nodded and left the room, making a beeline for Boq.


	32. Chapter 32

"Fae, you really do need to make sure you're keeping your strength up," Fiyero said to her as they walked from the mess tent back toward the Palace. Private Schultz was keeping up; a few paces behind so the two could talk privately. Doctor Talib had decided that the lack of food and drink was a good portion of Elphaba's physical issue, and he was going to have food and drinks brought into the Palace on a regular basis.

"I'm not sure how I even managed to eat just now. It wasn't bad enough that basically Morrible was going to take my powers and then kill me to rule over Oz with an iron fist. Then Boq read that…" Elphaba practically gagged on her own words. Fiyero ached to pull her into his arms and reassure her that Morrible was dead and that things were going to get better. Part of the problem was, he couldn't guarantee that last part.

"Everything you've been through; it just seems completely unfair to add to the pile. My concern is where it puts you. The Munchkins don't want to know that you're next in line for leading them and the good people of Oz aren't going to understand that you're also the daughter of the man we've been trying to remove from office. I'm not sure we can trust the Council with this information," the former Prince was concerned.

"Glinda trusts Barat. Arif and Fekri seem like good men but my concern lies with Pepi," the green woman admitted.

"Well three against one would be in our favor," Fiyero smiled slightly as they started up the front steps of the Palace.

"Boq really had no idea what he was reading. He's got to be very confused at this point," Elphaba said.

"I honestly thought he'd try to kill you," the Vinkun told her.

"Me too. I could almost feel his rage when I first came up to him but when I was able to get him moving again it dissipated a little. He could be boiling just beneath the surface though," she admitted.

"I'll keep an eye on him," Fiyero promised as they entered the building and headed for Morrible's office.

"How can we help Boq?" Elphaba asked as they entered the room.

"If you could start taking a look at those random numbers that would be great. I can keep plowing through these conversions, but I still have no idea how they fit in," he admitted from his spot at the chalk board.

"Do we have what pages and ciphers they were with?" She wanted to know.

"Yes, I wrote it down," Boq moved to the desk and handed her a separate sheet with the numbers, the page they were found on, and what cipher was being used on that particular page.

"I'll see what I can do," Elphaba promised.

"It could very well be something only you or Glinda would understand since you were her students," the Tin Man figured.

"It could be," she shrugged and took a seat behind Morrible's desk in the fish woman's chair.

"Speaking of Glinda, where did she get to?" Fiyero asked.

"She said something about meeting up with a Lieutenant Bayram. She had some sort of idea, but she didn't tell me what," Boq confessed. Fiyero turned to Sergeant Zeki and indicated he wanted to speak to him off to the side of the room. The two moved over and the Sergeant asked what his Captain was thinking.

"I thought other than getting Boq, Bayram was staying away from this," Fiyero said.

"I have noticed that he and Glinda seem fairly close. He was her only friend once you and Zetti went off looking for Miss Elphaba," Zeki explained.

"Do you know where she went?" The former Captain wanted to know.

"I honestly don't but she was in a bit of a mood. I'm guessing whatever she was thinking about Bayram knew what it was. He didn't seem flustered about anything and you should have seen him when he was trying to distance himself from the investigation. He was flustered then," the Sergeant explained.

"Well, he was about to become head of the Gale Force. As the second Lieutenant, he was basically at the peak of his career. He would never be expected to be Captain unless something bad happened to me and Zetti. Plus, he was helping Glinda, I'm not sure what that entailed, but I'm sure it was stressful. You know that feeling," Fiyero pointed out.

"True, I do," Zeki nodded. The Vinkun wondered just what the blonde was up to and how the Lieutenant fit in. He didn't realize that Glinda was on the verge of something that would change everything.


	33. Chapter 33

"I would have thought that this would have been looked for earlier," Bayram admitted. Both he and Glinda had gone into the throne room to search for the Wizard's trunk. They hadn't had to look far. It was behind the throne and in it were more bottles of the elixir that the Wizard was so fond of. There was more in there than just bottles and they were sorting through it on the steps leading up to the throne. The bottles were placed behind them, a safe distance from the steps so that they could be used as evidence.

"Morrible and I were probably the only ones that knew about it, other than you, once I told you," the blonde figured as the Lieutenant handed her a book that was locked with a small lock.

"Is there a key?" She wondered.

"I don't see one. Can you open it with your magic?" Bayram asked. He'd pulled loose papers from the box and a cloak, effectively emptying it.

"He probably has it on him. Well might as well give a lock picking spell a try," Glinda said. While she was attempting to get the book open, the Lieutenant shook out the cloak. Nothing fell out of it, so he put it down. Moving to the papers, he discovered that he could sort of read them.

"These are not in Ozian, but I can kind of read it. Have you seen it before?" He wondered, showing the papers to the blonde.

"He called it 'English'. It's mostly like Ozian. What are those?" She wondered, taking them to look closer.

"I'd say they look like a flyer. You know kind of like those signs we post of wanted criminals," Bayram said.

"I know what you mean but these look like flyers for his 'Miracle Elixir'. He's claiming it'll cure what ails you," Glinda frowned, handing the pieces of paper back to him.

"Only if you call getting drunk off your ass a cure," the Lieutenant shook his head, placing them back in the trunk.

"And want to be manipulated. He makes my skin crawl," the blonde involuntarily shivered.

"How'd the spell go?" Bayram asked, changing the subject.

"The book is open, but it looks like a long read," Glinda heaved a sigh.

"It's not in code is it?" He wondered.

"Thankfully not," She smiled slightly. Bayram stood up and grabbed the bottles off the steps. He put them back into the trunk and closed the lid.

"I think we should take this to the Council," he told her.

"I agree but they won't be meeting until tomorrow afternoon," she reminded him.

"Then it's back to Morrible's office. We need to keep this safe," the Lieutenant said. Glinda nodded, quickly standing up, clutching the book close. Bayram picked up the trunk and they headed back into the hallway.

"So now that the Captain is back, and hopefully with this case that is building, everything will go back to normal?" He wondered.

"Normal is going to have to be new. Trying to convert those that rabidly followed the Wizard will be tough. I imagine unrest will follow. I'm kind of surprised we haven't had some sort of incursion attempt yet. Probably the only thing keeping the people of the Emerald City at bay is the fact that there are heavily armed Vinkun troops here," Glinda didn't pull any punches.

"You think that they'll try something before you make an announcement and explain the situation?" He was concerned.

"I honestly have no idea, but I suppose we have to be prepared for anything," she said as they reached Morrible's office.

"Then you and I need to talk later. Just the two of us, please," Bayram told her before she opens the door for him.

"Ok, let's drop this off and check in on everyone and we'll go from there," Glinda smiled at him, wondering what he wanted to talk to her about.


	34. Chapter 34

Boq had been moving right along through Morrible’s book. There were no more earth-shattering reveals regarding Elphaba but there certainly were more insights on what the plans had been prior to discovering the green woman. Glinda and Lieutenant Bayram had only stopped in for a few minutes before disappearing again.

“Any luck with the random code?” Sergeant Zeki wondered. He’d taken a seat on top of Morrible’s desk, across from the green woman, who sat in Morrible’s chair.

“Using the translations, I’m still struggling on how it all fits together. It’s not like there are indications where the first word ends and the next word begins,” Elphaba frowned.

“Because you don’t have all the letters?” Zeki asked.

“Yes, partially. I’m not entirely sure if all the words are in Ozian. Yero, can you take a look at this? Any Vinkun in the there?” She wanted to know. Fiyero came over from his seat in one of the cushy chairs and took a look at the piece of paper with Elphaba’s attempt at codebreaking on it. 

“Doesn’t look like it to me,” he shrugged apologetically before handing back the piece of paper. He retook his seat in the chair.

“No Munchkin either. I’ll have Glinda take a look when she gets back and see if there is any Gillikinese in there. That only leaves us with someone who could speak Quadling,” Elphaba said.

“That is a tall order. Only Councilman Pepi speaks it around here, as far as I know,” Private Schultz spoke up from his spot across the room on the couch.

“How would you know that?” Zeki gave him a look, hopping off the desk.

“My roommate when I first joined the Gale Force was from Quadling Country. I learned a little but I’m not fluent. I heard Councilman Pepi muttering it the other day when we were in the temporary Council chamber,” Schultz explained.

“Where’s your roommate?” Elphaba asked.

“He quit the Gale Force and went home. The service wasn’t for him. I might recognize some of it,” the Private said.

“Take a look at what I have, see if you recognize it. You don’t, you don’t, at least we tried,” the green woman smiled. Schultz nodded and took a look at it. A few minutes later, he shook his head.

“Sorry. Like I said, I’m not fluent.”

“What is Glinda up to anyway?” Boq piped up without looking up from the page he was decoding.

“I honestly have no idea. She promised to be right back,” Fiyero said.

“That was like twenty minutes ago,” the Tin Man pointed out.

“She’s with Lieutenant Bayram. How much trouble could she get in?” Elphaba asked.

“Schultz, man the fort. I’ll scoot out and see if I can find those two,” Sergeant Zeki said before quickly ducking out the door. They slipped into silence for a minute or two before Elphaba spoke up.

“What if this code starts from the back of the book?”

“You mean like you’ve got the end of the code and not the beginning?” Boq stopped what he was doing.

“Yeah. I mean what would prevent Morrible from going to the back of the book and starting there?” She asked.

“Absolutely nothing. She’s done everything else the hard way, why not this?” Fiyero wondered.

“Well, I have about ten more pages to go before we get there,” Boq admitted.

“Means that we can make sure everyone gets dinner. We’re way past snacks at this point,” Private Schultz said.

“He’s right. It’s almost eight o’clock,” Fiyero realized. Schultz nodded and was about to head back out into the hallway to instruct the guard when the door opened.

“Captain, I think you better come with me,” it was the guard from the hallway.

“What’s going on?” The former Prince asked.

“Sergeant Zeki is requesting you join him in the Wizard’s office,” the Corporal explained. The room was literally just two doors down the hall. Fiyero nodded and exited the room while Schultz asked about dinner for the people in the room.

The Vinkun knocked on the door just a few moments later and Sergeant Zeki opened the door, escorting him inside, before shutting the door behind him. Fiyero looked at Glinda and the Lieutenant and then turned to look at Zeki.

“What’s going on?” He asked.

“You’ll never guess what I caught these two doing,” Zeki frowned. Fiyero turned to the blonde and Bayram.

“Lin?” He wasn’t sure he wanted to know.

“Go on and tell him,” the Sergeant gave the two of them a look.

“Fiyero… I…” Glinda started.

“Captain, I’m sorry. I never should have said anything. Do not blame Lady Glinda,” Bayram spoke up.

“There were necking, sir. Quite ardently,” Zeki finally spilled since the other two hadn’t seen fit to tell him. Fiyero drew his lips tight.

“I don’t know what came over me,” Glinda said as the Vinkun held up his hand.

“Don’t apologize. I won’t be apologizing either,” Fiyero told her, making everyone in the room confused.

“For what?” Zeki asked.

“I’m in love with Elphaba. I have been for a long time,” the former Captain admitted. Zeki’s eyes went wide.

“You are?” Glinda’s eyes were wide as she was discovering something about herself – she wasn’t as upset as she thought she’d be.

“I am and Elphaba loves me. We just didn’t know how to tell you,” Fiyero said. The blonde opened her mouth and then closed it again.

“You were mutually cheating on each other?” Zeki couldn’t believe it.

“In all fairness, I just told Lady Glinda how I felt. She did not know until now and before I knew it, we were…” Bayram started.

“No apologies, remember. The truth has set all free. Well almost all of us. There is still work to do in setting our friend free,” Fiyero said.


End file.
